USA01 September, 20262 min read
US Department of Homeland Security Proposes Ending H-4 EAD Work Authorization for H-4 Spouses
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DHS proposes ending H-4 EAD work permits, impacting thousands of families, many Indian. The proposal is in early stage; current EAD rules remain in effect for now.
H-4 EAD proposal
The US Department of Homeland Security has listed a proposal that could end employment authorization for certain H-4 visa holders, potentially affecting H-1B spouses who currently work in the United States with an H-4 EAD work permit. The proposal would remove certain H-4 dependent spouses from the category of people eligible to apply for employment authorization, reversing the 2015 policy that allowed some H-4 visa holders to work in the United States.
“The US DHS has listed a proposal that could end employment authorization for certain H-4 visa holders.”
The proposal is still at an early stage and has not changed the current H-4 EAD rules, so valid EAD holders can continue to work legally in the US. NDTV reports that the plan is titled "Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses From the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorisation" and that it has been added to the Department of Homeland Security's long-term regulatory agenda, though no date has been set for its release.
Who would be hit
NDTV says data on H-4 Employment Authorisation Document (EAD) applications from 2014 to 2017 show that 93 per cent of approvals went to Indian nationals, and 94 per cent of those were women. India Today similarly says the proposal, listed on Reginfo.gov under the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, is titled "Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses From the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorisation."
The DHS notice quoted by NDTV states, "DHS is proposing to remove from its regulations certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B non-immigrant workers as a class of aliens eligible to request employment authorisation under the (c)(26) category." NDTV adds that the proposal would reverse the changes made in the 2015 final rule, "Employment Authorisation for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses," and restore DHS's long-standing policy of not extending eligibility to request employment authorisation to H-4 dependent spouses.
No immediate change
Both IndianEagle and NDTV emphasize that the proposal is not a final rule and does not end H-4 work authorisation immediately, because DHS must publish a formal Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register, allow public comment, and then issue a final rule. IndianEagle says the proposal does not cancel existing H-4 EAD work permits and that H-4 spouses with a valid EAD can continue working under the current policy until DHS completes the required process.
“No. The proposal does not cancel existing H-4 EAD work permits.”
NDTV notes that during Trump's first term in 2017, the DHS proposed removing employment authorisation for certain H-4 spouses, but the plan was never finalised and was withdrawn in 2021. In a separate US immigration debate, The Times of India quotes Circle Plus Pay CEO and founder Nitish Kannan saying, "It’s pathetic victim mentality" in response to H-1B shaming, while also asserting "I’m a US citizen" and describing H-1B as providing only 65,000 jobs a year.