Federal Government Backlogs And Delays Would Have Caused Work Permits To Expire This Month, Preventing Immigrants From Seeking Or Maintaining Work Through No Fault Of Their Own

April 8, 2024 - WASHINGTON, DC – Last week, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) applauded the news that following her push, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has increased the automatic extension period for work permits from 180 days to 540 days to account for USCIS’ significant delays in processing renewal applications for work permits. In May 2022, when USCIS experienced a similar problem with processing delays, the administration temporarily extended the grace period for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) from 180 days to 540 days. That rule was set to expire on April 24, 2024, even though USCIS still had a backlog of over 279,000 renewal applications as of September 2023. This would have meant immigrants and asylum seekers could have lost their permission to work through no fault of their own, leading to serious consequences for Nevada families and the local economy.

“Government backlogs and delays should not prevent people in Nevada with legal work permits from providing for their families,” said Senator Rosen. “I’m glad to see that following our efforts, the Administration has increased the work permit extension period, allowing immigrants to continue working legally and contributing to our economy while their renewal applications continue to be processed.”

Senator Rosen has been a leader in the fight for comprehensive immigration reform. Last year, she applauded news that following her push, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security extended Temporary Protected Status designation for El Salvador and Honduras. Senator Rosen has also repeatedly called for a legislative fix to protect DACA recipients. She also helped introduce the Children’s Safe Welcome Act, a bicameral bill to protect immigrant children in government custody.
Source: Senator Jacky Rosen