- DHS revived a long-term proposal that could remove H-4 spouses from employment authorization eligibility.
- Current H-4 EAD cards remain valid until expiration, and the agenda item is not an immediate work stoppage.
- USCIS requires new Form I-539 and Form I-765 editions starting September 15, 2026.
The H-4 EAD program remains active on August 30, 2026, while the Department of Homeland Security has revived a proposal that could remove certain H-1B spouses from employment authorization eligibility. The filing does not cancel current work permits. Existing cards remain usable until their individual expiration dates.
The proposal appeared on the 2026 regulatory agenda as a Long-Term Action. Its record lists RIN 1615-AD00 and a received date of August 24, 2026. The proposed-rule date remains “to be determined.”
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That status signals planning, not an immediate work stoppage. A qualifying spouse with a valid card can continue working while the department considers whether to advance the measure.
No draft text has been released. The proposal remains at the agenda stage.
The measure would reverse a policy created in 2015, when the Obama administration allowed certain H-4 spouses of H-1B workers to seek employment authorization. The regulatory agenda describes the planned reversal as an effort to “restore DHS’s long-standing policy of not extending eligibility to request employment authorization to H-4 dependent spouses.”
Any change would require several steps. The department would first publish a proposed rule, accept public comments, issue a final rule and set an effective date. The agenda entry alone does not remove anyone from the eligible class.
Existing permits remain usable, but renewals face separate deadlines
Current authorization and future renewal filings now operate under different pressures. The rulemaking has not ended existing permits, but a separate change already removed automatic extensions for some renewal applicants.
| Issue | Current position |
|---|---|
| Valid cards | Remain valid until the expiration date printed on each card |
| Renewal timing | Filings are generally allowed up to 180 days before expiration |
| Automatic extension | Unavailable for renewals filed on or after October 30, 2025 |
| Application form | Qualifying spouses apply through Form I-765 in category (c)(26) |
| New form editions | USCIS requires new editions of Form I-539 and Form I-765 starting September 15, 2026 |
USCIS announced the form change on August 14, 2026. The agency says older editions will be rejected for filings postmarked or submitted electronically on or after September 15.
That deadline applies to both forms listed in the announcement. Applicants adjusting or extending H-4 status must account for the new edition requirement alongside the work-authorization filing.
Long processing times leave little room for missed deadlines
Processing varies by service center. Attorney analyses published in August 2026 put typical waits at roughly 6 to 15.5 months.
Premium processing is not available for the work permit itself. Applicants cannot use that service to guarantee a faster decision on the employment authorization application.
The timing creates a separate planning problem from the revived proposal. A spouse whose card approaches expiration must consider the filing window, the loss of automatic-extension protection and the possibility of a lengthy adjudication period.
H-4 eligibility also depends on the H-1B principal’s immigration stage. The spouse category is not independent of the principal worker’s status.
The proposal would mainly affect future eligibility
If the department advances the measure, its direct effect would be on the ability of qualifying spouses to obtain or renew employment authorization under the H-4 program. It would not automatically cancel cards that remain valid.
The regulatory agenda title identifies the intended change as “Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses From the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorization.” That language points to a future eligibility rule, not an immediate termination notice to current cardholders.
The proposal has revived a dispute over a program that has operated since the 2015 rule. Its inclusion on the agenda does not establish whether the department will publish a proposed rule, what text it would contain or when any final measure would take effect.
The public record described the action as a long-term item on August 29, 2026, with no draft text released. The process therefore remains at an early procedural point.
The next formal development would be publication of a proposed rule. That publication would open the public-comment stage before any final rule could take effect.
