USCIS Announces H-4 Employment Authorization

Undeterred by the temporary injunction that delayed the start of the expanded DACA program (which the Justice Department has appealed), the Obama Administration has announced the launch of another key element of its effort to modernize existing immigration laws.

Yesterday, USCIS announced the long-awaited regulatory change that will make certain H-4 spouses eligible for employment authorization (EAD). This extension of EAD eligibility does not apply to all H-4 spouses, nor does it apply to children.

For an H-4 spouse to be eligible for this category of employment authorization, the H-1B spouse must:

1. Be the beneficiary of an approved I-140 immigrant visa petition, or
2. Be in their seventh or later year of H-1B status by virtue of being the beneficiary of a pending or approved PERM labor certification application or I-140 immigrant visa petition that was filed more than 365 days before the end of their sixth H-1B year.

Although USCIS will not begin accepting H-4 EAD applications until May 26, 2015, we encourage potentially qualified individuals to contact us to determine whether they meet the eligibility criteria.