On May 26, 2015, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) will begin to accept applications for employment authorization for certain spouses of H-1B non-immigrants. Until now, spouses of H-1B workers were not eligible to work in the U.S. As of the effective date, some H-4 spouses will be eligible to apply for an Employment Authorization Document, or EAD. With an EAD, an eligible H-4 spouse who was before unable to contribute to household income, will have the freedom to seek and find employment in the U.S.
Announced in November 2014 as part of President Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration, this provision is aimed only at the spouses of H-1B workers who have been sponsored for lawful permanent residence. According to USCIS, the EAD will only be available to the H-4 spouses of H-1B’s who:
· are the beneficiaries of an approved Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (I-140); or
· hold H-1B status beyond the six-year limit pursuant to Sections 106(a) and (b) of the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000, known as AC-21.
The application for employment authorization will be submitted on Form I-765 accompanied by a filing fee of $380, two passport-sized photographs and evidence of the applicant’s eligibility. It is predicted that it will take roughly 90 days for USCIS to process and approve the applications.
These provisions will help H-1B/H-4 families who are pursuing lawful permanent residence (green card) to achieve a greater degree of economic stability as they transition from being non-immigrants to becoming immigrants. USCIS estimates that roughly 180,000 H-4 spouses will be eligible to apply for an EAD. To view the DHS announcement on EAD for some H-4 visa holders, click here.
For more information on how an H-4 can apply for an EAD, contact us.