USCIS reduces maximum validity of certain EADs

On December 4, 2025, as part of USCIS’ increased screening and vetting of foreign nationals working in the U.S., USCIS announced it will be reducing the maximum validity period for certain Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) categories (see below), whether they are initial or renewal applications.

Validity of 18 months (from 5 years) for EAD applications pending or filed on or after December 5, 2025:

• admitted as refugees;

• granted asylum;

• granted withholding of deportation or removal;

• with pending applications for asylum or withholding of removal;

• with pending applications for adjustment of status under INA 245; and

• with pending applications for suspension of deportation, cancellation of removal, or relief under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act.

Validity of 1 year or end date of authorized parole period or duration of Temporary Protected State (TPS), whichever is shorter:

• paroled as refugees;

• granted TPS;

• granted parole;

• with a pending TPS application; and

• spouse of entrepreneur parole.

With auto-extension of EADs no longer available for certain categories, including I-485 applicants (C09) listed above, affected foreign nationals should file renewal applications at the earliest possible opportunity – ideally the full 180 days in advance – to avoid a lapse in work authorization.

Jennifer Carr © Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2025

DHS ends automatic extensions of work authorization for many EAD categories

On October 29, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released an interim final rule removing automatic extensions of work authorization for many foreign nationals who timely file an application to renew their Employment Authorization Document (EAD). For years, USCIS provided automatic extensions for 180 days—later increased to 540 days—to provide relief from massive application backlogs and processing delays. The removal of automatic extensions therefore marks a sharp shift away from longstanding policies designed to promote employment continuity.

Key features of the interim final rule include:

• No automatic extension for many EAD renewal applicants filing on or after October 30, 2025.

• Limited exceptions for categories where automatic extensions are required by statute or designated through notice (such as TPS-related categories).

• Continued validity of any automatic extensions for renewals filed before October 30, 2025.

Affected EAD categories include H-4 spouses of certain H-1B nonimmigrants (C26) and foreign nationals who have filed AOS applications under section 245 of the INA (C09).

The end of these automatic extensions may create compliance and workforce management challenges for employers. Many foreign nationals rely on automatic extensions to continue working lawfully while their renewal applications are processed, particularly in categories with long processing times. Without automatic extensions, delays or adjudication backlogs at USCIS may result in abrupt work authorization lapses, requiring employees to stop working.

Affected foreign nationals should file renewal applications at the earliest possible opportunity—ideally the full 180 days in advance—and enter case inquiries with USCIS as soon as permissible. They may also wish to consider alternative work authorization strategies.

Interim final rules take immediate effect but are subject to public comment. Litigation to prevent the rule taking effect is likely; however, employers should plan for a new reality in which uninterrupted employment authorization may no longer be assumed, even for long-term employees who have previously maintained continuous status.

U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS)’s announcement of the interim final rule can be accessed here. USCIS’ webpage on automatic EAD extensions can be found here.

Chris Beckerson. © Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2025

U.S. Supreme Court leaves employment authorization for H-4 spouses of certain H-1B workers intact

After nearly a decade of litigation, the long-running battle over employment authorization for certain H-4 visa holders appears to be over. On October 14, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up Save Jobs USA v. Department of Homeland Security, a case challenging the legality of 8 CFR 214.2(h)(9)(iv). Under this regulation, an H-4 spouse of an H-1B nonimmigrant is eligible to apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) if the H-1B nonimmigrant:

• Is the beneficiary of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker; or

• Has been granted an H-1B extension beyond the six-year limit on H-1B time under sections 106(a) or (b) of the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 (AC-21), as amended.

Sections 106(a) and (b) of AC-21 refer to H-1B extensions that are based upon the filing of a PERM labor certification application or Form I-140, immigrant petition for alien worker, at least one year before the end of the H-1B nonimmigrant’s six-year limit, where no final decision to deny the PERM application, I-140, or subsequent application for lawful permanent residence has been made.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to deny certiorari—meaning it refused to hear an appeal from a lower court's decision— in Save Jobs USA leaves in place the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeal’s ruling upholding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s authority to grant this type of employment authorization. While the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision does not constitute a ruling on the merits, it ends the litigation and effectively reaffirms DHS’s authority in promulgating the H-4 EAD regulation.

Although Save Jobs USA directly concerned H-4 spouses, its implications extended beyond that visa category. For example, similar arguments of legal authority to grant employment authorization underpin Optional Practical Training employment authorization for F-1 students. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling against DHS in this case had the potential to disrupt not just the H-4 EAD rule but other programs providing employment authorization to foreign nationals too.

Our prior blog posts regarding H-4 EAD matters can be found here.

Snigdha Ravulapati © Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2025

USCIS Permanently Increases Automatic Extension Period for Certain EADs

On Friday, December 13, 2024, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Final Rule (FR) in the Federal Register (89 FR 101208) that will permanently increase the automatic extension period of employment authorization for certain Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applicants who apply for an EAD renewal on a timely basis. The rule affects several EAD applicant classes, including H-4 spouses of certain H-1B nonimmigrants.

The rule is effective on January 10, 2025, 30 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register. In the FR, USCIS determined that after two Temporary Final Rules (TFRs) the current 180-day automatic extension under 8 CFR 274a.13(d) does not provide USCIS enough time to address large spikes in EAD filings, other circumstances that may occur in the future, and increase renewal EAD application processing times. Making the increase permanent helps prevent eligible renewal EAD applicants from losing employment authorization due to USCIS processing delays. USCIS notes that “lapses in employment authorization and EAD validity can result in substantial harm to noncitizens, their families, their employers, and the public at large.”

USCIS has therefore permanently amended existing regulations to increase the automatic extension period to up to 540 days starting the day after the EAD expiration date. The increase will apply to any eligible renewal EAD applicant with an application filed on or after May 4, 2022, and pending on or after May 4, 2022.

USCIS’ announcement of the FR is available on the Newsroom page of its website. A list of affected EAD applicant classes is available on the Automatic EAD Extension page of its website. Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr will watch for developments related to this FR and will post updates here as they occur.

© Jewell Stewart Pratt Beckerson & Carr PC 2024