Overstay means staying in the U.S. beyond the date indicated on your I-94 or the stamp in your passport or the corresponding Duration of Status (D/S) – even for one day. Overstay is one of the acts that causes you to be “out of status.” It is a violation of U.S. immigration laws and it results in your visa being automatically voided. In this situation, you are required to reapply for a new non-immigrant visa but it may even cause you to be ineligible for a visa in the future for return travel to the U.S. – depending on how long you were out of status.

Individuals who have the endorsement of D/S, but who are no longer performing the same function in the U.S. that they were originally admitted to perform (i.e. no longer working for the same employer or no longer attending the same school) can only overstay if the DHS or an immigration judge makes a specific finding of status violation.