F-1/J-1 after the Sept 14 injunction: two-scenario memo

The deadline is the nearest status end date

If an F-1 or J-1 employee's status end date is on your calendar, stop building the fixed-admission file. On September 14, 2026, a federal district court in Massachusetts halted the DHS fixed-admission rule nationwide, the day before the rule was set to begin on September 15, 2026. Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV, who sits in the District of Massachusetts, issued the delay for the rule that would have swapped duration of status for fixed admission periods for F, J, and I nonimmigrant categories.

The case is styled Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, docket No. 1:26-cv-13799-FDS, and the decision is dated that day. The court found the challengers had a substantial likelihood of success on their Administrative Procedure Act claim. For F, J, and I nonimmigrants, the old duration-of-status standard continues to apply, and the new rule is paused, not voided, during the merits litigation.

The court called the relief temporary and let the government seek First Circuit review while the pause runs until the merits case is finally resolved. The order kept two separate Student and Exchange Visitor Program messages outside the injunction, one dated August 12, 2026 and the other dated August 24, 2026, and they concerned Curricular Practical Training eligibility.

Pause fixed-admission compliance work, but keep the existing compliance calendar active. Do not tell employees that their status now has a new end date. Keep the existing status end date as the control date, and keep the work authorization end date visible in the same file. Correct the calendar now, before the branch changes.

The checklist that keeps both branches open

Put the First Circuit review risk on the same calendar as each employee's status end date. Prepare a contingency memo now, because the branch can change the filing trigger without changing the employee's job.

• Confirm each employee is still on duration of status, not a fixed admission period.
• Mark the program end date and the status end date in the same calendar view.
• Flag any employee whose work authorization depends on Curricular Practical Training.
• Separate the evidence file into two folders: status quo and fixed-period regime.
• Record the trigger that would move the file from one branch to the other.
• Assign an owner and a review date for the memo.

Run the list before the next status end date, and update the memo when the First Circuit review or merits ruling changes the branch.

The memo should split the evidence, not the employee

Branch one assumes duration of status stays. Put the employee's program end date, the work authorization end date, and the date the company would need to file an extension or change of status in the memo. Note any CPT dependency, because training eligibility can change with program requirements.

Branch two assumes the fixed-admission rule returns. Explain how the rule would use fixed admission periods instead of duration of status. The evidence should show that the employee stayed within the period, including travel, employment, and program records. State the next step if the current postponement is challenged.

The memo also names what does not change: the job, the file-accuracy duty, and the need to know when work authorization ends. What changes is the label on the end date and the filing trigger attached to it.

The file names the documents that prove the employee remained in the program, because a future branch may require a different proof set and a different filing deadline to meet.

Keep the memo short enough that a hiring manager can read it in one sitting and a lawyer can defend it in one hearing; if the branch changes, the file should already contain the dates, the evidence, and the owner.