The Trump administration has revived a proposal that could remove employment authorization for certain H-4 spouses of H-1B visa holders, potentially affecting households that rely on the dependent spouse’s income.
The proposal would remove certain H-4 spouses from the group of noncitizens eligible to obtain employment authorization. The H-4 EAD program was created in 2015. The Federal Register said the rule would allow certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B workers who were pursuing employment-based lawful permanent residence to apply for employment authorization. If the proposal eventually becomes a final rule that removes that employment authorization, affected spouses could no longer continue working under an H-4 EAD.
The potential financial impact therefore depends on whether a household currently relies on the H-4 spouse’s earnings.
The Department of Homeland Security has placed a proposal titled “Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses from the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorization” on its regulatory agenda.
A listing on the regulatory agenda does not itself change the existing immigration rules. The US government has not cancelled the H-4 EAD program and there is no immediate change for H-4 spouses who currently hold valid work permits. The current proposal would reverse that policy by removing H-4 spouses as a class eligible for employment authorization, according to the federal regulatory record. The H-4 proposal comes amid a broader push by the Trump administration to change the H-1B program.
Because the DHS proposal is still part of the regulatory process, the distinction is important.
