Washington Ends Open-Ended I Visas for Foreign Reporters — and Draws a Much Shorter Line for China

Chinese citizens wait to submit their visa applications at the US Embassy where blind rights activist Chen Guangcheng is believed to be hiding, in Beijing on May 2, 2012. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Beijing for talks with Chinese leaders that risk being overshadowed by the case of a blind activist said to be under US protection after fleeing house arrest. Unless it can be settled swiftly, the case of Chen Guangcheng threatens to be a major distraction at the annual two-day meeting between leaders of the world's two largest economies that starts on May 3. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Credit: Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/GettyImages)

For nearly fifty years, foreign correspondents, students, and exchange visitors admitted to the U.S. under "duration of status" could remain for as long as their program or assignment lasted, with no expiration date stamped on their paperwork. That changed on July 17, 2026, when the Department of Homeland Security issued a final rule that assigns hard expiration dates instead. Reporters working on I-visas now get a maximum single stay of 240 days. Students and exchange visitors on F and J visas are capped at four years. Anyone who needs more time has to file for an extension with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services or leave the country and re-enter.

China Gets a Far Tighter Window