ON February 24, 2015, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced that on May 26, 2015 it will accept applications to grant employment eligibility to certain H–4 spouses married to H–1B workers. Although this new rule was announced by the Obama Administration several months ago, the USCIS waited to implement the new rule until after the required “Notice and Comment” period for interested Governmental and business stakeholders to weigh in on the new program. The new rule offers relief to thousands of working spouses of foreign professionals in the US in H-4 status.
In order for an H-4 spouse to qualify for a work permit, the H–1B worker Spouse must either have an approved Form I–140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker or be the Beneficiary of an approved H–1B extension of stay because he or she is the beneficiary of a permanent labor certification application or an employment–based immigrant petition that was filed at least 365 days prior to reaching the end of the sixth year of H–1B status.
The USCIS issued these new regulations to alleviate the long wait for employment authorization for those H–4 spouses who experience long delays to secure work authorization through the H–1B worker’s application for lawful permanent resident status i.e., “green card status.” In effect, the new rule should encourage H–1B workers who have already started to pursue their green card status to continue the process, even though their H–4 spouses have been unable to work. The result should benefit the economy as more talented foreign professionals will accept US job opportunities if there is a vehicle for employment for their spouses. By granting work authorization to H–4 spouses, a new pool of talented, skilled, and professional spouses will be introduced into the labor market.
To obtain the work permit, an H–4 spouse must demonstrate (1) eligibility through one of the two requirements listed above; (2) that the H–1B worker is maintaining H–1B status; and (3) must file an application (Form I–765) and pay the filing fee of $380 and submit the required documentation set forth in the form. The H-4 work permit will coincide with the duration of status given to the H–1B worker.
Any H-1B visa holders and their H-4 spouses should make arrangements to prepare to file for the H-4 work permits on May 26, 2015, in order to take advantage of this new benefit.
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Daniel P. Hanlon is a California State Bar Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law and a principal of Hanlon Law Group, PC, located at 225 S. Lake Ave., 11th Floor in Pasadena, California; Tel. No. (626) 585-8005. Hanlon Law Group, PC is a “full-service Immigration Law firm.” E-mail: [email protected] and www.hanlonlawgroup.com.
