by Adam Wodon/Managing Editor (@chn-adam-wodon)
Less than a month after the NCAA approved new age rules that included five years of eligibility for all players, a United States government rule change could eliminate the opportunity for half of college hockey.
The pros and cons of the NCAA’s new eligibility standards have been well-debated for months. Where it landed — with players being allowed to play for five years — has positives and negatives, depending on where you stand.
But the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that international students going to school in the U.S. on an F-1 visa, would have their “Duration of Status” capped at four years. Since 1978, U.S. policy has allowed for students to remain in the U.S. on their visa “until they finish their program of study.”
Approximately half of college hockey players are at their schools on an F-1 visa.
The rule is slated to take effect Sept. 15.
Students/players will have the ability to file for an extension, though there is a filing fee and a backlog of requests, and no certainty that the request would be granted. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service has a backlog of cases already, with wait times averaging one year, according to InsideHigherEd.com.
The feedback from nearly every university administrator was against the new DHS rule. But the current federal administration went ahead with it anyway, citing national security reasons, and the need to ensure students weren’t overstaying their visa for no reason.
“For decades, foreign students have been admitted into the U.S. indefinitely, allowing thousands to abuse our immigration system by perpetually enrolling in courses to avoid having to leave the U.S.,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a department news release. “By implementing clear, finite limits on these visas, the United States is reclaiming its ability to properly screen, vet, and monitor individuals within our borders. This final rule ensures that foreign students remain focused on their primary purpose: completing their studies and returning home.”
The American Immigration Lawyers Association put out a statement on social media, criticizing the new rule, writing the rule “duplicates processes already managed through SEVIS (Student & Exchange Visitor Information System). [The new rule will dismantle] the legal immigration system, potentially creating a larger undocumented population and ultimately undermining the very economic and security foundations the Administration claims to protect.”