Spouses of HiB visa holders can apply for US work permit

 

The USCIS, in a statement, said the Department of Homeland Security is extending the eligibility for employment authorisation (EAD) to certain H4 dependent spouses of H1B non-immigrants who are seeking employment based Permanent Residency.

Eligible



individuals include certain H4 dependent spouses of H1B non-immigrants (principal H1B worker) who are the beneficiaries of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, or satisfy at least one or more of the three conditions.

The conditions include that the principal H1B worker has an approved I-140 or is currently on an extended H1B status beyond the six-year limitation based upon an I-140 petition application pending for at least 365 days (one calendar year).

“This decision is going to directly affect many of our life members as they would now be able to join the professional workforce and chase the ‘American Dream’,” the Telugu Association of North America said in a statement. Recent State Department figures show that approximately 76 per cent of those who received H4 status in 2013 were from South Asian countries.

“Many H4 dependent spouses have found themselves to be involuntary homemakers upon their arrival to the US, which not only impacts their family income and sustainability, but also diminishes their ability to expand upon professional skills,” SAALT said.

SAALT has called on USCIS to allow all employment authorisation for all H4 visa holders, as H1B workers and their families are most successful when H4 visa holders have the ability to contribute to their household income and our economy and pursue their goals.