05/04/2024
New USCIS Rule Extends Work Authorization in Face of Delays
Thousands of individuals face the risk of losing their legal work status in April. However, a new rule has been introduced to extend employment authorization by 540 days for immigrants experiencing processing delays in renewing their work permits, as announced by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services on Thursday, April 4, 2024.
Scheduled to come into effect on April 8, this rule will safeguard the ability to work legally for approximately 800,000 immigrants who would otherwise have faced losing their authorization soon. Recently, Democratic lawmakers, along with local officials and immigrant advocates, have been urging the administration to expedite these new regulations to provide relief to immigrants facing the threat of losing their legal employment status.
Normally, immigrants renewing work permits have a six-month grace period after the official expiration date. However, due to significant wait times of up to 16 months for a majority of renewal applications, USCIS issued a temporary rule in 2022 extending this grace period to 540 days. Even after the expiration of this temporary rule in October, prolonged wait times persisted.
The new temporary final rule from USCIS will again extend the automatic grace period to 540 days. It will apply to individuals applying for work permit renewal by Sept. 30, 2025, or approximately 18 months after its publication in the Federal Register.
USCIS Director Ur Jaddou acknowledged the agency's progress in reducing processing times for most work permit categories over the past year but noted that a record number of applications had been received simultaneously. This temporary extension of the automatic period aims to prevent lapses in employment authorization, providing a window for the agency to explore long-term solutions through public comments and new strategies to ensure eligible noncitizens can maintain their employment benefits.
Despite calls from Congressional Democrats for permanent extensions or longer-term relief measures, the regulations do not adopt these recommendations. However, USCIS anticipates that the new relief measures, combined with other strategies like increasing the validity period of work permits up to five years, will help alleviate the agency's workload.
Elected officials have cautioned that the impending expiration of work permits for many immigrants could harm local economies still grappling with labor shortages. It could also increase pressure on immigrant services and jeopardize access to health insurance and public benefits.
As always, please do not hesitate to contact Oke Legal Group at 469-706-0191 or via email with any questions.
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