The United States has announced a significant policy change, extending the validity period of Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) to five years for certain non-citizens, including those awaiting green cards. The move, aimed at reducing the number of renewal applications and associated processing times, is expected to benefit a large number of Indians residing in the country.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) disclosed that the extended five-year validity applies to both initial and renewal EADs for specific non-citizens, such as asylum or withholding of removal applicants, individuals undergoing adjustment of status under INA 245, and those facing suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal.

The objective behind this policy change is to streamline the renewal process for Employment Authorization Documents, thereby minimizing the need for new Forms I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, in the coming years. Despite the extended validity, the maintenance of employment authorization is contingent upon the noncitizen’s underlying status, circumstances, and EAD filing category, the federal agency clarified.

In a parallel development, a recent study revealed that over 1.05 million Indians are in the queue for employment-based Green Cards, and a staggering 400,000 of them may pass away before obtaining this coveted document of permanent residency in the U.S. The employment-based Green Card backlog has reached a record high of 1.8 million cases, with India accounting for 63% of the backlog. The study, conducted by David J. Bier of the Cato Institute, underscores the challenges posed by per-country caps on Green Card issuance, affecting individuals from specific countries.

Source: Deccan Herald