The federal court has allowed DHS motion. This means DHS can start on the H4-EAD removal rule making.
The SaveJobsUSA VS DHS case is now in HOLD (Abeyance).
This is because DHS has planned to take off the H4-EAD and the case will not hold any significance if the DHS ultimately withdraws H4 spouse work permits.
DHS needs to report on the rule progress ( H4-EAD removal ) every 90 days to court starting Feb 21st, 2018. The next due date is May 22, 2018.
CURRENT STATUS : DHS has not published any rule yet as nothing has been sent to OMB.
We are tracking the DHS progress and will keep updating this page.
The H4-EAD sun-set is pretty much imminent at this point of time.
Following are the excerpts of court decision:
The United States Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit has issued the following order:
Notice of Docket Activity: The following transaction was entered on 02/21/2018 at 10:58:36 AM EST and filed on 02/21/2018
Case Name: Save Jobs USA v. DHS
Case Number: 16-5287
Docket Text: PER CURIAM ORDER [1718765] granting motion to hold in abeyance [1710291-2]; denying motion to reschedule briefing and oral argument [1710188-2]. This case will continue to be held in abeyance pending further order of the court. Appellee represents that it plans to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking in February 2018 to remove from its regulations certain H-4 spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants as a class of aliens eligible for employment authorization. Appellee is directed to file a status report within 90 days of the date of this order, and every 90 days thereafter. The parties are directed to file motions to govern further proceedings within 30 days of appellee’s completion of the proposed rulemaking. Status Report due by 05/22/2018. Before Judges: Rogers, Griffith, and Kavanaugh. [16-5287]”
DHS is now looking at June 2018 to come up with the H4 EAD termination rules.
DHS has not published any rule yet, for H4-EAD withdrawal / removal as anticipated based on their 2017 Fall rule making agenda and official timelines mentioned there.
This is a temporary relief and does not mean that they have abandoned their intention. They are probably working on the rules and trying to find ways to mitigate any lawsuits that may crop up in future.
DHS on Feb. 28 said “ significant revisions ” were made to a draft that originally was slated for a February release.
Those revisions required a new economic analysis, which “ required an additional several weeks to perform ,” the DHS told a federal appeals court.
The news is not good for H4-EAD from anywhere. Trump administration and its agencies are aggressively working on taking the work permits away!
“A former communication is expected to be made later this summer,” US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Francis Cissna said in a letter to Senator Chuck Grassley.
“Our plans include proposing regulatory changes to remove H-4 dependent spouses from the class of aliens eligible for employment authorisation, thereby reversing the 2015 final rule that granted such eligibility,” Mr Cissna said.
Update Apr 25, 2018 - FWD.us group supports H4 EAD
An immigration group fwd.us backed by Facebook, Apple, Microsoft and other big tech companies has criticized USCIS and DHS’s decision to withdraw H4-EAD.
In response to USCIS director Cissna’s letter highlighting the plan to terminate H4-EAD work permits by 2018 summer, they have released a report that highlights the effects of such a barbaric move and the kind of financial burden that this change would cause on H1B families and spouses.
“The current administration must reverse its attempts to use the regulatory and policy process to make it harder for international talent to contribute to the United states, and to make it more challenging for those who are already here to contribute.”
“There is no question that our immigration system is fundamentally outdated and broken, but the answer cannot be simply shut the door; instead, we must begin the hard but crucial work of reform to ensure that immigration remains a driver of our economy and America’s unique competitive advantage for generations to come.”
All H4-EAD workers and beneficiaries, get ready for a roller coaster ride. News is not going to be good next month.
I know a lot of people who were working on H4-EAD and were eligible for H1B, have already converted.
If you can, you should too convert as early as possible to keep your job and income source un-affected.
130 bipartisan congress members have sent a signed letter of support in favor of H4EAD to USCIS. They have strongly asked to keep the work authorization intact.
The opportunity for H-4 visa holders to work has made our economy stronger, while providing relief and economic support to thousands of spouses, mostly women, who have resided in the United States for years.
Many are on the path to permanent residency and would already be permanent residents if not for the decades-long employment backlogs. Rescinding the rule will hurt the competitiveness of US employers and the US economy, as well as H-4 accompanying spouses and their families. We strongly urge you to reconsider this action, said the lawmakers.
We write to urge you to maintain the current regulation granting work authorization to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B non-immigrant workers.
I hope that the push from all around helps USCIS and DHS think and reverse their stance on H4EAD removal.
The chances look bleak though with Trump government pushing it from back.
Source for the screen shot showing 120 days RFE comment by people:
USCIS officially allows filing H4 EAD renewal 180 days before expiry
The RFEs are in stark contract with official USCIS H4-EAD renewal guidance which allows H1B spouses to file H4-EAD renewal 180 days before actual expiry:
The same 180 day renewal policy has been mentioned at other places on USCIS website for EAD too:
Update May 23, 2018 H4 EAD latest News - SaveJobsUSA vs DHS in Federal court
On May 22, 2018, DHS has officially intimated the Federal court about its decision and rule making process status for H4-EAD withdrawal by saying that they are in ‘Final Stages of drafting the H4-EAD withdrawal rule’.
The SaveJobsUSA vs DHS case against H4 EAD work permit was placed in hibernate mode earlier.
This clearly signals that DHS is on track to submit the H4-EAD withdrawal rule in June 2018 for OMB (Office of Management and Budget) approval and public comments (most probably only for 30 days!).
Get ready for embracing the new rule. People how are eligible for H1B should switch to it as early as possible to keep their job and financial health un-affected.