Huge Relief For Spouses Of H-1B Workers

A single word on a thick bureaucratic file on the 7th day of the Biden administration delivered a huge win for spouses of workers on H-1B visas in the US who spent the last 4-years worried sick that their work authorizations would be killed off.

Up until the summer of 2015, H-4 visa holders could not legally hold paid employment in the US. Almost as soon as Obama changed the game, the lawsuits followed, and then the Trump presidency took the attack on the H-4 work permit to a whole new level.

"Great news! Hopefully, H4EAD delays will be ending soon which is leading to a long wait for dependent spouses," tweeted Rashi Bhatnagar.

Sharmistha Mohapatra posted, "Big win for H4 EAD holders today. Former President Trump's EO to rescind H4 EAD is now withdrawn by POTUS. Let's hope excruciating long wait times often resulting in job loss is taken away too!”

The Trump government justified the move saying it "economically significant" and aligns with the "Buy American and Hire American" executive order.

Now, the backlink to that Trump executive order ends up and re-routes to the Biden White House. "Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses from the Class of Aliens Eligible for Employment Authorization" was a Trumpian agenda pursued by White House immigration hawks with intense zeal and inter-agency collaboration.

The decision to rescind the proposed rule on revoking the H4 work permit came on the same day Biden signed an executive order calling for the practice of racial equity in the US.