Making America Weak and Stupid

My apologies if someone else has already written about the new rules for student visas, but they’re bad enough that it’s probably worth a second pass.

Since 1978, foreign students have been admitted into the U.S. for an unspecified period, enabling thousands to become “forever students” by perpetually enrolling in courses to avoid departure. The final rule ends this exploitation through several major reforms:

• Fixed Admission Caps: Nonimmigrant students (F visas) and exchange visitors (J visas) will be admitted for the length of their specific program, not to exceed a maximum period of four years.
• Mandatory Federal Extensions: Visa holders requiring additional time to complete an academic program must formally apply for an Extension of Stay (EOS) directly through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This transitions oversight from university staff back to federal authorities and subjects applicants to biometric vetting, background checks, and fraud screenings.
• Reduced Departure Grace Period: The time allowed for F-1 students to prepare for departure, transfer schools, or change status following graduation is reduced from 60 days to 30 days.
• Program Change Restrictions: The rule introduces strict limitations on academic changes.

The final rule will publish in the Federal Register in the next few days. The rule will go into effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.

Current nonimmigrant visa holders residing in the United States under the previous “duration of status” framework will transition to the new system automatically, with their authorized stay capped at a maximum of four years from the effective date of this rule.

Because nothing says “Make America Great Again” like training foreign scientists, engineers, artists, and entrepreneurs at U.S. institutions and then requiring them to immediately go back home. But, on the upside, these requirements will probably further deter students from coming here in the first place — because who the hell wants to apply for “permission” from the federal government before they can change their major?

“This rule introduces unnecessary government intrusion into academic decision-making,” said Fanta Aw, executive director and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators, in a statement. “Requiring students and scholars to seek approval to extend their academic program, change majors, or pursue the next level of study places life-changing educational decisions in the hands of an already overburdened immigration system—not educators, and not institutions.”

tl;dr:

I just heard from a student who was supposed to go home for a family member’s surgery. But now they’re worried about CPB yanking their visa when they try to return, so they stay here. That’s the kind of everyday bullshit the Trump administration is inflicting on even the people they claim are the ‘right kind’ of foreigners.