According to the Department of Homeland Security, there is a strong likelihood that the proposal it plans to put forward to revoke the H-4 EAD program may not be published before Spring 2020, and the proposal’s likelihood of being published by Spring 2020 is even more tentative.
This announcement was made through a letter from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit as a result of the lawsuit in the challenge of the H-4 EAD program, that is, Save Jobs v. DHS.
There will be a public comment period after the Department of Homeland Security publishes this proposal that will give the public 30-60 days to submit feedback on the proposal. When this public comment period ends, DHS will use the feedback to create a final regulation that will go through the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review before it is published. This process is likely to take several months before it is finalized.
Impact on H-4 Immigrants and Actions to Take:
USCIS will still be taking applications for H-4 spouses who qualify to apply for H-4 EADs, thus, eligible H-4 spouses can still apply. Additionally, people with current H-4 EADs may still file to renew their application up to 6 months prior to the expiration of their current document. Spouses who qualify and are in another immigration category may also submit an EAD application in connection with an application to change the status to H-4. H-4 EAD applications may also be filed concurrently with the H-1B visa applicant’s application in order to extend status beyond the sixth year.
Posted in: Immigration
posted on: November 22, 2019