USCIS Increases Employment Authorization Period for Certain Adjustment of Status Applicants

USCIS has announced that it will be increasing the initial employment authorization period for certain adjustment of status applicants. In this article, we will explain this new policy alert in more detail.

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USCIS Update Regarding Employment Authorization

Now, here’s the exciting news! For certain adjustment applicants, USCIS is updating policy guidance in the USCIS policy manual to increase the amount of time a grant of employment authorization is valid.

When you apply for adjustment of status you may also apply for employment authorization so you can work in the United States while you are waiting on your adjustment application.  Now, for certain adjustment of status applicants, USCIS will be granting an initial period of employment authorization for two years, instead of one year.

This is wonderful news as it now may allow you to work for two years rather than one year without having the burden of having to renew your EAD after only one year.  

Background

When someone applies for their green card from within the United States, the process is called an adjustment of status. 

When someone applies for an adjustment of status, they may also apply for employment authorization to be able to work in the US. USCIS will often times grant an application for employment authorization before the adjustment of status application is approved.

Before USCIS made the changes that are the subject of this article, when someone’s employment authorization was approved, based on a pending adjustment of status, the employment authorization was granted for a period of one (1) year.

The issue is that for many adjustment of status applications, the processing time may end up taking much longer than a year. So people would have to apply to renew their employment authorization.

Applying to renew employment authorization can be riddled with problems for both the applicant and for USCIS.  For USCIS, applications to renew employment authorization create a large influx of additional applications, and it perpetuates the cycle of slow processing times.

For individuals that have to apply to renew their employment authorization, this is yet another complicated immigration application to worry about. 

Therefore, this updated policy by USCIS promises to be a welcome change for adjustment of status applicants as well as for USCIS.