H4 Work Authorization and H-1B PP

H-4 Work Authorization and H-1B Extension of Status 

From May 26, 2015 to July 27, 2015, USCIS will be suspending premium processing for all H-1B Extension of Stay petitions. Please note that this is only for H-1B Extensions of Stay, not for executing an AC21 change of employment or any other H-1B petition. The reason for this suspension is that USCIS wants to dedicate resources to timely adjudications of H-4 nonimmigrant employment authorization applications. USCIS is expecting 180,000 applications.

In February, regulations were published that granted certain (not all) H-4 nonimmigrant spouses work authorization. An H-4 is an individual who is a dependent on an H-1B worker. It can be a child or a spouse of the H-1B worker. Work authorization is only available for spouses of H-1B workers who have a pending I-140 Petition (employment-based permanent residence) or have an approved I-140 Petition and are waiting for their priority date.

USCIS will be accepting applications for H-4 nonimmigrants on May 26. The Notice and Comment period was last summer and received an overwhelmingly positive response on behalf of granting work authorization.

Premium processing is a service that is available for many but not all employment-based petitions. For a fee of $1,225, you can request adjudication of a petition within 15 days. This does not apply for family-based petitions, such as a petition for your spouse.