When does the F-1 60-day grace period start, and is it still 60 days?
Take a student with three candidate dates: her visa stamp expired August 30, her OPT work authorization ended July 31, and she was laid off July 17. Which one started her grace period? Students guess the visa date most often, and it's the one date that matters least. The length hasn't changed either: the grace period is still 60 days. A DHS rule that would have cut it to 30 days for many students was postponed by a federal court on September 14, 2026, the day before it was set to take effect. So both questions have settled answers today: what starts the clock, and how many days are on it. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
Question 1: what starts the clock
| Date | What it actually controls |
|---|---|
| Program end date (I-20/SEVIS) | Starts the grace period if you don't go on to OPT or another program. |
| OPT/EAD end date | Starts the grace period when your post-completion OPT runs its full course. |
| Visa stamp expiration | Only your ability to enter the U.S. You can remain in valid F-1 status with an expired visa stamp; it neither starts nor shortens a grace period. |
| Layoff date during OPT | Starts your unemployment-day count (90 days max on standard OPT), not a grace period. Your OPT authorization continues until the EAD end date. |
So in the student's scenario above: her grace period began July 31, the day her OPT authorization ended. The layoff two weeks earlier consumed unemployment days; the visa stamp was irrelevant. You get one grace period per completed phase. If you moved straight from your program into OPT, the 60 days run once, after OPT ends.
Question 2: how many days are on the clock
Under the regulation in force today, the answer depends only on how your studies end. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
- 60 days: you completed your program, or your post-completion OPT. This is the familiar grace period, and it is the law today.
- 15 days: authorized withdrawal. If your DSO authorizes you to withdraw from classes, you have 15 days to depart.
- None: failure to maintain status. A student who drops below a full course of study without DSO approval, or otherwise fails to maintain status, gets no departure period.
Travel does not change your number. A student admitted for duration of status (D/S) who goes home for a break and returns is admitted for D/S again, and the 60 days still wait at the end of the program or OPT. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(4), (f)(5)(i), (f)(5)(iv)
What you can do during the grace period
- Prepare to depart the United States. That is the period's core purpose. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
- Transfer to another SEVP-certified school or move to a new education level. The regulation names transfer as a use of the 60 days; your DSO must release or update your record before the period runs out, so start the conversation before your program ends. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(ii), (f)(5)(iv), (f)(8)
- File for OPT, within its own window. USCIS must receive your Form I-765 no later than 60 days after your program end date, and within 30 days of the date your DSO enters the OPT recommendation in SEVIS. The OPT window and the grace period after your program both run 60 days from the program end date, but the 30-day recommendation clock can close first. See the filing-window guide. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(11)(i)(B)(2)
What you can't do
- Work. All employment authorization ended with your program or OPT.
- Re-enter in F-1 after leaving. Departure during the grace period ends it under longstanding SEVP guidance, and there's no returning on that SEVIS record. If you have travel plans and a pending next step, sequence them with your DSO before booking anything.
- Assume you have 60 days, or any days, after a termination. The full grace period follows completion. An authorized withdrawal carries 15 days; a failure to maintain status carries none. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
The edge case that trips people: not finishing on time
If you don't complete your program by the I-20 end date (a failed class, a delayed thesis), you can't ride the grace period into "extra time." Today, more time means a program extension from your DSO, entered in SEVIS with a new I-20, and it must be requested before the program end date passes. The DSO can grant it only for compelling academic or medical reasons, not for academic probation or suspension. No USCIS filing is involved. Once the date lapses without one, the options (reinstatement, or departure and re-entry on a new record) are all worse than the five-minute conversation with your DSO would have been. If that's you: DSO, today. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(7)(i), (iii), (iv)
What the postponed rule would change
Status: postponed nationwide by court order on September 14, 2026 (Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration v. DHS, No. 1:26-cv-13799, D. Mass., under 5 U.S.C. § 705). Next court date: October 2, 2026. This page is updated when that changes.
Everything in this section describes the final rule as published at 91 FR 44976 (July 17, 2026). None of it applies today. 91 FR 44976
- Four departure periods instead of three. Students admitted under the rule's fixed-date system would get 30 days after completing the program, built into the I-94 end date; early completion would also carry 30 days; an authorized withdrawal 15; a status violation none. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(v), as amended by 91 FR 44976
- 60 days only for "transition" students. Students in the U.S. on the effective date, admitted for D/S and maintaining status, would keep the 60 days only while they remained in the country. One trip abroad and back would convert them to the fixed-date system and a 30-day period. 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1), as amended by 91 FR 44976
- A shorter OPT window. The OPT filing window would close 30 days after the program end date instead of 60. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(11)(i)(B)(2), as amended by 91 FR 44976
As published, the rule counts its transition dates from its original September 15, 2026 effective date. If the postponement ends, check how DHS applies those dates at that time; this page will say.
The full breakdown of what the rule would do to grace periods is in the 60-vs-30 guide, and the travel piece in the travel guide.
Henry answers under the rules in force today and cites the regulation. The free calculator shows what the postponed rule would mean for your dates if it takes effect. Free, no account needed; please leave out student names and ID numbers.
See what the postponed rule would mean with the Duration Rules Calculator → Ask Henry about your timeline →
FAQ
Does my grace period start when my visa expires?
No. The visa stamp is an entry document; its expiration neither starts nor ends a grace period. The 60 days start at your program end date, or at the end of your authorized post-completion OPT. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
Is the F-1 grace period still 60 days?
Yes. A student who completes a program, or post-completion OPT, has 60 days to prepare to depart or transfer. The 30-day departure period in DHS's fixed-period rule (91 FR 44976) is not in effect: a federal court postponed that rule on September 14, 2026. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
Does getting laid off during OPT start my grace period?
No. A layoff starts your unemployment-day count. The grace period begins when your authorized OPT period ends, the EAD end date.
Can I work during the grace period?
No. Employment authorization ends with your program or your OPT. The grace period is for preparing to depart, transferring, or filing a next step such as OPT within its own window. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)
Can I leave the U.S. and come back during my grace period?
No. Under longstanding SEVP guidance, departure during the grace period ends it for re-entry on that SEVIS record. Travel earlier in your program does not shorten your grace period under the rules in force today. 8 CFR 214.2(f)(5)(iv)