• H4 EAD Approved: Effective on 5/26/2015

    Wait is over. H4-EAD approved. Around 179,600 H4 visa holders are eligible to apply for H4-EAD immediately. They can start working in USA for any employer without any sponsorship. Prediction is 55,000 new EADs will add added every year

    Fee and Process to apply for H4-EAD

    USCIS begin accepting EAD for H4-EAD applications on May 26th 2015. You should not apply before May 26th 2015.

    Filing instruction for I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization)
    http://reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAView...004&icID=20321

    Fee is $380.

    Know about background of H4-EAD >>

    How to would it affect Job market and Career of Masters students in USA?

    IT Consulting billing rates slightly go down especially in the areas of Testing, Java, .NET & reporting technologies.

    OPT students enjoyed the luxery of EAD till now. Now onwards they will find hard to get a job since more candidate with EADs are being added to the job market. Prediction is 55,000 H4-Spouses will get EADs every year from next year.

    DHS Extends Eligibility for Employment Authorization to Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses of H-1B Nonimmigrants Seeking Employment-Based Lawful Permanent Residence

    Release Date: February 24, 2015

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director León Rodríguez announced today that, effective May 26, 2015, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is extending eligibility for employment authorization to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants who are seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. DHS amended the regulations to allow these H-4 dependent spouses to accept employment in the United States.

    Finalizing the H-4 employment eligibility was an important element of the immigration executive actions President Obama announced in November 2014. Extending eligibility for employment authorization to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants is one of several initiatives underway to modernize, improve and clarify visa programs to grow the U.S. economy and create jobs.

    “Allowing the spouses of these visa holders to legally work in the United States makes perfect sense,” Rodríguez said. “It helps U.S. businesses keep their highly skilled workers by increasing the chances these workers will choose to stay in this country during the transition from temporary workers to permanent residents. It also provides more economic stability and better quality of life for the affected families.”

    Eligible individuals include certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants who:

    • Are the principal beneficiaries of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker; or
    • Have been granted H-1B status under sections 106(a) and (b) of the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 as amended by the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act. The Act permits H-1B nonimmigrants seeking lawful permanent residence to work and remain in the United States beyond the six-year limit on their H-1B status.



    DHS expects this change will reduce the economic burdens and personal stresses H-1B nonimmigrants and their families may experience during the transition from nonimmigrant to lawful permanent resident status, and facilitate their integration into American society. As such, the change should reduce certain disincentives that currently lead H-1B nonimmigrants to abandon efforts to remain in the United States while seeking lawful permanent residence, which will minimize disruptions to U.S. businesses employing them. The change should also support the U.S. economy because the contributions H-1B nonimmigrants make to entrepreneurship and science help promote economic growth and job creation. The rule also will bring U.S. immigration policies more in line with those laws of other countries that compete to attract similar highly skilled workers.

    Under the rule, eligible H-4 dependent spouses must file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, with supporting evidence and the required $380 fee in order to obtain employment authorization and receive a Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document (EAD). USCIS will begin accepting applications on May 26, 2015. Once USCIS approves the Form I-765 and the H-4 dependent spouse receives an EAD, he or she may begin working in the United States.

    USCIS estimates the number of individuals eligible to apply for employment authorization under this rule could be as high as 179,600 in the first year and 55,000 annually in subsequent years. USCIS reminds those potentially eligible that this rule is not considered effective until May 26, 2015. Individuals should not submit an application to USCIS before the effective date, and should avoid anyone who offers to assist in submitting an application to USCIS before the effective date.

    For more information on USCIS and its programs or about this rule and filing procedures, please visit uscis.gov or follow us on Facebook (/uscis), Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon.
    Comments 2 Comments
    1. Unregistered's Avatar
      Unregistered -
      I got my H1b in oct 2014 but I have worked for only 3 months and looking for new job.Since this rule is out and I have no job now(My husband fulfills the critiria)and my passport dosent have any h1b stamping till now
      how can i change my status to h4(through I539 thats fine ) but is it possible that suppose I stay on h1b ,apply for change of status(to h4)
      before May 26th(am I allowed to do that and remain working on h1b even after applying for change of status??

      What is the other option for change of status??Suppose I go to india
      and do not go for H1 b stamping and just come back (without any stamping of h1b or h4)
      Will this be possible that i would be in just h4 without applying anything and by just visiting india and coming back to US?or when i visit to india i need to go to h4 stamping deliberately
    1. Unregistered's Avatar
      Unregistered -
      I got my H1b in oct 2014 but I have worked for only 3 months and looking for new job.Since this rule is out and I have no job now(My husband fulfills the critiria)and my passport dosent have any h1b stamping till now
      how can i change my status to h4(through I539 thats fine ) but is it possible that suppose I stay on h1b ,apply for change of status(to h4)
      before May 26th(am I allowed to do that and remain working on h1b even after applying for change of status??

      What is the other option for change of status??Suppose I go to india
      and do not go for H1 b stamping and just come back (without any stamping of h1b or h4)
      Will this be possible that i would be in just h4 without applying anything and by just visiting india and coming back to US?or when i visit to india i need to go to h4 stamping deliberately
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