EAD Processing Times

Keep on Waiting:

Employment Authorization Document Processing Times

An Employment Authorization DocumentĀ application is supposed to, by regulation, be adjudicated within 90 days. For first time asylum applicants, the regulation states it needs to be adjudicated within 30 days.

Processing times for applications to USCIS usually fluctuate between slow, medium, and quick. The trend for Employment Authorization Cards is that they have been taking the full 90 days. Recently, some applications have exceeded 90 days. This is in spite of the effort that USCIS has made to distribute the work through transfers to different service centers. You may receive a transfer notice from USCIS, which merely means that your case is being adjudicated at a different service center. The end result is that individuals who need to and are eligible to obtain work authorization are left waiting longer and longer. It makes renewing employment authorization difficult to do in a timely manner. An application cannot be submitted more than 120 days in advance. If the Service is exceeding 90 days to adjudicate, that means that applications need to be submitted upon eligibility. Another delaying factor is that it takes a few days for the cards to be produced and mailed.

EAD Cases Transferred

Employment Authorization Cases Being Moved to Texas

If you have a recent employment authorization case, do not be surprised if USCIS sends you a transfer notice. To spread out the work more evenly, the agency is sending many of its employment authorization applications to the Texas Service Center. When USCIS transfers applications between service centers, it issues a transfer notice. All the notice means is that your case is being transferred. A decision has not been made.

The agency is still trying to ensure that it is making decisions within 90 days. If you move your residence, you are obligated to make USCIS aware of the change. This is important. If you move addresses and USCIS does not know, your card may not arrive to the proper address.