Will the US End Work Permits for Spouses of H-1B Visa Holders? No need to panic just yet — All about the buzz over the H-4 EAD program | Today’s news
The Trump administration is considering ending employment authorization for some spouses of H-1B visa holders, reversing a policy that has allowed eligible H-4 spouses to work legally in the United States for more than a decade. The move could have an impact on working families and household incomes.
What is the move?
Proposal, published on the website reginfo.gov, under the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, entitled “Removal of H-4 Dependent Spouses from Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorization.”
It reads: “DHS (U.S. Department of Homeland Security) proposes to exempt from its regulations certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrant workers as a class of aliens eligible to apply for category (c)(26) employment authorization.
Who are dependent on H-4?
H-4 dependents are the legal spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 of a primary temporary worker in the United States, such as an H-1B visa holder.
Simply put, a spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 are eligible to come to the US as dependents of an H-1B worker’s H-4.
According to the Murthy Law Firm, H-4 status must be separately extended for each family member by filing an application with USCIS. It says that H-4 status is not automatically extended when a spouse or parent receives an extension of H1B status.
Those in H-4 status are allowed to live in the US and attend school, but are not allowed to work. However, some H-4 spouses may work if they apply for and receive an Employment Authorization Document (EAD).
“You will not be authorized to work until USCIS approves your Form I-765,” says US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
What does this mean?
According to reports, this proposal would reverse the changes made in 2015 Final Rule“Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses.”
Reinstates long-standing DHS policy of not extending eligibility to apply for employment authorization to H-4 dependent spouses.
It proposes to exclude spouses of H-4 dependents from the category of foreign nationals who are eligible for employment authorization documents, or EADs.
No need to panic just yet
The change has not been reflected and nothing has yet changed for H-4 EAD holders. This is not yet a proposed rule. The item has been classified as “Long-Term Action” and, importantly, the date of the proposed rule is listed as “To Be Determined.”
No draft text is available and no deadline has yet been set for the introduction of a draft proposal.
Before the H-4 EAD could actually be eliminated, DHS would publish a proposed rule, invite public comments, consider and respond to those comments, publish a final rule, and set an effective date. This can take months.
What might change if this rule is implemented?
Current USCIS rules continue to allow certain spouses of H-4 dependents to apply for an Employment Authorization Document, or EAD.
The H-4 EAD program was created in 2015. The Federal Register said the rule would allow certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B workers who pursued lawful permanent residence based on employment to apply for employment authorization.
USCIS currently says that an H-4 spouse can apply for employment authorization if the H-1B spouse meets specific requirements, which include:
1. is the principal recipient of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Foreign Workers; or
2. Has been granted H-1B status under sections 106(a) and (b) of AC21. Under AC21, H-1B nonimmigrants seeking lawful permanent residence based on employment (a green card) may be eligible to work and remain in the United States after the six-year H-1B entry restriction period.
This means that changing H-4 employment eligibility would affect not only immigration status, but also the ability of qualified spouses to remain in the U.S. workforce.
According to the Times of India, the significance of the H-4 EAD cannot be understood without looking at the green card backlog in the US.
A recent analysis by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) estimated that as of December 2025, more than a million Indians, including dependents, were waiting in the first three categories of employment-based green cards.
Work authorization can also serve as a source of income for H-1B families.
Thus, the potential financial impact depends on whether the household currently relies on the H-4 spouse’s earnings.
If the proposal eventually becomes a final rule eliminating this employment authorization, affected spouses would no longer be able to continue working under the H-4 EAD.
It is estimated that nearly a million Indian spouses hold H-4 EADs. If the program is ultimately canceled, these families could face major disruptions to their lives.
