I am currently working on H4 EAD which is valid till March ,2021. Last time when my spouse changed employer in 2018, H1 ,H4 and EAD were applied together and got approved together. Spouse changed employer in July of this year . The employer has applied for H1 and H4 . H1 approval came in August for March,2023. Unlike 2018 due to new bio metric requirement and COVID, H4 approval is pending and H4 EAD extension has not been applied. USCIS website shows that due to COVID back log ,Texas service center is only processing I539 of Feb ,2020 at this moment . So it would take quite a while for H4 approval to come .
My questions are -
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Can i file for H4 EAD extension now while H4 approval is still pending with H4 extension receipt that was received given H4 and H4 EAD extension were not filed together in July ?
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Looking at current backlog it looks like H4 approval is not coming for me before Feb/March 2021. Whether i can file H4 EAD now or only when H4 approval comes through, i may not have a H4 EAD extension received by March ,2021 .I would not be able to continue working even if H4 EAD extension is applied by March ,2021 like it works for H1B . Is that correct statement ?
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What is my best course of action to avoid break in employment ? Apply H4 EAD extension now with H4 receipt or wait till H4 approval comes through next year and then apply H4 EAD with premium processing as it seems H4 EAD is now added to this service ?