On September 15, 2026, DHS replaces F-1 duration of status with admission for a fixed time period, under the final rule published at 91 FR 44976 (July 17, 2026). The calculator above works out which set of rules applies to you, your protected end date, your grace period, and whether you need to file with USCIS — and links each result to the paragraph of the rule it comes from.
It turns on two questions: were you in the United States on September 15, 2026, and have you left and re-entered since?
Transition students — physically in the U.S. on September 15, 2026, maintaining F-1 status, admitted for duration of status — keep old-rules treatment while they remain in the country. That protection runs through the later of the I-20 program end date or the EAD end date in place on September 15, 2026, capped at September 15, 2030, followed by a 60-day departure period (outermost date: November 14, 2030). Two things end it early: leaving and re-entering after September 15, 2026, which converts you to the fixed-date system, and falling out of status. 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1)
Students admitted after September 15, 2026 receive a fixed period of stay matching the program length on the I-20, up to a maximum of four years measured from the I-20 program start date — not from the day you enter — plus a 30-day period after the program on the I-94. English-language training is capped at 24 months and public high school at 12 months. 8 CFR 214.1(a)(4), 214.2(f)(5)(i)
8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(v)
Under duration of status, more time meant a DSO extending the I-20 in SEVIS. Under the fixed-date system, staying past your admission date requires Form I-539 filed with USCIS, with a DSO-endorsed I-20 and evidence of funds. USCIS must receive it before your authorized stay ends. A timely filing gives authorized stay while pending, and on-campus, CPT, and economic-hardship employment automatically extend for up to 240 days — though not if the extension was filed during the 30-day departure period, which permits study only. Approval is not guaranteed. Each extension can be granted for up to four years. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(7), (f)(5)(viii)
A transition student who files post-completion OPT (Form I-765), or a STEM OPT extension before the current EAD expires, on or before March 18, 2027 and while still within their period of admission (including the 60-day period), does not need to file an I-539 for that OPT period. Departing the U.S. before filing forfeits it. DHS may extend the window in six-month increments. 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1)(i)-(iii)
If you are physically in the United States on September 15, 2026, maintaining F-1 status, and were admitted for duration of status, you are a transition student and keep old-rules treatment while you remain in the country. Leaving and re-entering after that date moves you to the fixed-date system.
The length of your program on the I-20, up to a maximum of four years measured from the I-20 program start date. English-language training is capped at 24 months and public high school attendance at 12 months.
Only for transition students. Under the fixed-period system, normal completion and early completion carry a 30-day departure period, an authorized withdrawal carries 15 days, and a status violation carries none.
Yes, if you need to stay past the admission date on your I-94 under the fixed-date system. USCIS must receive the filing before your authorized stay ends; a timely filing gives authorized stay while it is pending, and approval is not guaranteed.
Longer plain-language explanation: The F-1 duration of status rule is ending: what changes September 15, 2026 · Full rule text: 91 FR 44976