Navigating the End of “Duration of Status”: Compliance, Extensions, and Enforcement Post-September 15

Jason Levy, Counsel | Grossman Young & Hammond

Jason Levy served for more than 15 years as Senior Attorney with the Office of the General Counsel, Immigration Law Division at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, advising the department’s policy, operational, and legal leadership — and counterparts across the interagency — on a wide array of immigration-related rulemakings and policies instituted by DHS and its component agencies, USCIS, CBP, and ICE, with a primary focus on employment-based immigration policy. Now Counsel with Grossman Young & Hammond, he draws on nearly three decades of experience in employment-based, family-based, and citizenship matters, spanning high-impact policy development, litigation, and administrative law in both the private bar and the United States government.

• Education & Credentials

Jason earned his J.D. from New York University School of Law and his B.A., with distinction, as a graduate of the honors program at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He is admitted to the Massachusetts Bar.

• Recognition & Leadership

Jason’s federal service drew repeated department-level recognition, including the DHS Secretary’s Commendation for Outstanding Service & Critical Contributions to Worker Protections (2022) and the DHS Secretary’s Award for Excellence (2015). He also received DHS Office of the General Counsel Excellence Awards for the AC21 Regulatory Team (2017), Executive Actions (2016), and H-2B Litigation and Regulation (2016), as well as a DHS OGC Excellence Award in 2015, along with DHS “One OGC” Awards for the Executive Action Litigation Team (2016) and the Senate Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill (2014). In private practice, Boston Magazine named him a Massachusetts Super Lawyer: Rising Star in Immigration Law in 2005, 2006, and 2009, an honor reserved for the top 2.5% of up-and-coming attorneys in Massachusetts, and he holds a Martindale-Hubbell AV Peer Review Rating.

• Professional Involvement

Jason is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). He served as Co-Editor-in-Chief of Advanced Immigration Strategies: Publication of the 5th Annual AILA New England Immigration Law Symposium (AILA 2007) and as Editor-in-Chief of Advanced Immigration Solutions for Small Business and Entrepreneurs (AILA 2004). His publications also include “H-1B Visas and Physicians” in Immigration Options for Physicians, 2nd Edition (AILA 2004), and “Family Sponsored Immigration” in the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education Immigration Law Primer (1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002 editions).

• Experience

At DHS, Jason routinely supplied subject matter expertise to U.S. Department of Justice counsel in significant federal court litigation, including matters before the Supreme Court, alongside his rulemaking and policy portfolio across USCIS, CBP, and ICE. Before his federal service, he spent 13 years — seven as a partner — with Ross, Silverman & Levy LLP, an immigration law firm in Boston, Massachusetts, counseling large multinational and domestic corporations, small and mid-sized businesses, major academic and medical institutions, and individuals on employment-based immigrant and nonimmigrant visa classifications, family-based visa classifications, the PERM labor certification process, consular processing, adjustment of status, and naturalization and citizenship.

Anne Rowley, Counsel | Grossman Young & Hammond

Anne Rowley is a business immigration attorney with a particular focus on international students and early-career professionals, helping them understand and successfully complete the transition from academic study to employment in the United States. A frequent author, presenter, and media commentator on immigration law developments, she speaks with particular emphasis on employment authorization, H-1B visas, and issues affecting F-1 international students and exchange visitors, and is recognized for translating complex regulatory developments into practical guidance for employers, institutions, and individuals.

• Education & Credentials

Anne earned her Bachelor of Arts and her Juris Doctor from Marquette University. She is admitted to practice in California (2017, active member), the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (2021, active member), and Wisconsin (2013, currently inactive member).

• Recognition & Leadership

Anne has been recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America in Immigration each year since 2023, and in 2026 she was nominated through the Build Fellowship for The Immies’ Thought Leader of the Year Award for shaping the conversation in immigration law. Within the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), she has held numerous leadership roles, including chairing the American Immigration Council Essay Contest Committee and serving on multiple education and conference committees.

• Professional Involvement

Anne’s recent presentations include “F-1 Student to H-1B Worker: Process and Planning in Turbulent Times” for the Student Resource Center in partnership with Interstride (February 2026), “DHS’ Termination of Automatic Extensions for EADs” as a Grossman Young & Hammond webinar (November 2025), and a published analysis of DHS’s proposed changes to the F and J student and exchange visitor rules (October 2025). Her CLE teaching includes “The Reality of Employment Authorization: EAD Strategy” for the Federal Bar Association sponsored by myLawCLE (March 2026) and “Navigating EAD Complexity: Processing Trends, Compliance, and Best Practices” for LawPracticeCLE (May 2026), and her university outreach spans recurring immigration conversations at the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy and panels at the University of Pennsylvania. She has appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered and has been quoted in Bloomberg Law and Law360. Her pro bono service includes the Transgender Law Center, Oasis Legal Services, AILA’s Military Assistance Program, VECINA, Project Citizenship, and the Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts, and she mentors first-generation and underrepresented college students through Braven.

• Experience

As Counsel with Grossman Young & Hammond, Anne advises employers and foreign nationals on a broad range of employment-based immigration matters, including work authorization and evolving immigration policy. She previously practiced with the world’s largest business immigration provider in its Boston and San Diego offices, representing multinational companies across industries including financial services, retail, entertainment, heavy machinery, clean energy, communications technology and computer software, semiconductors, and athletics, and developing deep experience in corporate immigration strategy and compliance. Earlier in her career, she practiced immigration law in Wisconsin, building the national perspective that continues to inform her work.

Emily Wolfford Colak, Immigration Attorney | Grossman Young & Hammond

Emily Wolfford Colak is an immigration attorney at Grossman Young & Hammond whose practice concentrates on employment-based immigration. She works with businesses, entrepreneurs, executives, investors, and individuals pursuing extraordinary ability and national interest petitions — including O-1, EB-1, EB-2 NIW, L-1A, and E-2 matters — taking a hands-on role in each case, from evaluating qualifications and eligibility requirements to drafting legal briefs, coordinating expert opinion letters, and assembling complete application packages.

• Education & Credentials

Emily earned her Juris Doctor from American University Washington College of Law (2017), where she received the Certificate of Excellence in Legal Research, Citation, and Writing Competency and served as a Senior Staffer on the American University Business Law Review, and her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Virginia Commonwealth University (2014). She is admitted to practice in New York (2020) and is fluent in Turkish.

• Recognition & Leadership

Emily was a recipient of Exceptional Pro Bono Honors at American University Washington College of Law in 2017. At Virginia Commonwealth University, she co-founded the Phi Delta Phi Pre-Law Honor Society and served as President, Vice President, and Treasurer of the Pre-Law Society.

• Professional Involvement

Emily has authored articles on cryptocurrency and initial coin offerings, contributed regularly to firm quarterly newsletters and client alerts, and presented on U.S. sanctions compliance to a multinational pharmaceutical client during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the Disability Rights Law Clinic, she contributed citations and edits to an American Bar Association resolution on Supported Decision Making, later approved by the Commission on Law and Aging, and she served as a grant interviewer for Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities with the National Council on Disability.

• Experience

Before joining Grossman Young & Hammond, Emily spent a year with Grape Law Firm PLLC in Washington, D.C., handling O-1, EB-1A, and EB-2 NIW petitions from intake through approval for entrepreneurs, executives, and individuals of extraordinary ability. She previously spent nearly eight years with Hergüner Bilgen Üçer Attorney Partnership in Istanbul, one of Turkey’s leading international law firms, where her work covered cross-border regulatory matters including U.S. sanctions, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, SEC regulations, digital assets, aviation, and intellectual property, and where she played a key role in the firm’s business development and marketing. She began her legal career as a Student Attorney with the Disability Rights Law Clinic at American University Washington College of Law, representing clients in matters involving education and housing discrimination, powers of attorney, and advance directives.

SESSION 1 – Fixed-Date Admissions After September 15: Transition Rules, I-539 EOS Mechanics, and Grace Periods | 2:30pm – 3:30pm

This session addresses the mechanics of status under the new fixed-date framework. Attendees will examine how CBP assigns fixed “Admit Until Dates” capped at four years, how legacy D/S holders trigger fixed end dates upon international re-entry or program expiration, and the Form I-539 Extension of Stay process — including the standard of proof for “compelling academic” or medical extensions, biometrics requirements, timing strategy, and maintaining CPT, OPT, and STEM work authorization while an application is pending. The session also covers the reduction of the post-completion grace period from 60 to 30 days, updated DSO transfer rules, and limitations on changing academic levels.

BREAK | 3:30pm – 3:40pm

SESSION 2 – Unlawful Presence and Compliance Integration: Enforcement Risk for Visa Holders, Employers, and Universities | 3:40pm – 4:40pm

This session turns to risk and compliance. Attendees will evaluate how the elimination of D/S shifts the timeline for statutory unlawful presence accrual under INA § 212(a)(9)(B) when an I-94 date expires without a pending EOS, and will examine employer and university compliance integration — coordinating SEVIS updates, Form I-9 verification compliance, and HR workflows for post-completion OPT and STEM OPT workers now subject to fixed USCIS authorization windows.