Is pending H4 EAD application affected by passport renewal?

India Passport Renewal
1

Hi @Anil_Gupta,

My passport is expiring by May 2019 and i’m planning to travel India in October to December this year.

Also I’m on H4 Visa and i have applied my H4 EAD in May 2018 based on my husband’s I-140, which is in progress.
Now, thinking to renew the passport before the India travel.

Have couple of questions,

  1. Is there any impact for the EAD process if i apply for passport renewal?
  2. Is it a right option to do the passport renewal now? Or should we wait until the EAD gets approved?

Kindly share your thoughts.

2

H4 EAD pending application is not affected by passport renewal

There is no impact on the H4-EAD application unless your passport expires before USCIS takes a decision on your application.

Did you submit your passport as the ID proof or anything else?
Related: How to file H4 EAD, Documents, Form i765 (New / Renewal Process) - USA

Should I renew passport after H4 EAD is approved?

It is your choice if you want to renew now or after getting H4-EAD.
Since, you still have time till May 2019, you can opt to get your passport renewed after coming back to USA in Dec or Jan.
But, that will pose another issue of i94 expiry.

Your i94 expiry will be matched to old passport expiry if you travel

When you will enter USA in Jan with OLD passport (unless you renew it in India), the i94 will be given only till the passport expiry date which would be May 2019.

You will have to travel out of US again to get new i94 with new passport.
(See this: i94 Extension after Passport Renewal (3 Options) - USA)

Keeping in mind above points, I would strongly suggest to get your passport renewed now.

3

Thanks a lot for the details Anil.

Yes, i submitted the Passport as the ID proof. Actually I followed your steps while applying my EAD that is there in the link(thank you!!). Will there be any problem if i apply for PP renewal now?

Thanks!

4

No, there should be no problem even if you submitted the passport as the ID proof as long it has not expired at the time of USCIS taking a decision on your application.

If passport expires while your H4-EAD is still pending, USCIS will issue an RFE to send the new valid passport.

But, in your case, that stage would not happen as you still have passport expiry till May 2019. You are good.