The White House Office of Management and Budget cleared the Trump administration’s duration-of-status overhaul, allowing the Department of Homeland Security to finalize a rule that would replace the long-standing system that lets international students remain in the U.S. through degree completion. DHS’s proposed approach would limit stay to four years before requiring extensions and would also constrain transfers and major changes. Higher education leaders have said the change would disproportionately affect programs longer than four years, including most Ph.D. pathways and many bachelor’s and professional programs, and would add administrative burden for institutions required to support extension requests. NAFSA reported that sessions on duration of status were packed at its conference, signaling institutions are already preparing for a policy shift. DHS said in the proposed rule that many students earn bachelor’s degrees within four years and that 79% of international students are enrolled in two-year master’s or four-year bachelor’s programs. Still, critics argue the rule’s impact would extend beyond the cohort and could further depress international enrollment amid existing declines.