US extends eligibility for employment to certain dependent spouses

The United States government will extend the eligibility for employment authorization to certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B non-immigrants who are seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident status.

The extension will be effective starting May 26, 2015, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) director León Rodríguez.

He said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) amended the regulations to allow H-4 dependent spouses to gain employment in the US.

An H-4 visa is a visa issued by the USCIS to immediate family members of the H-1B visa holders. An H-1B, meanwhile, is a non-immigrant visa in the US

Under the rule, H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B visa holders must file an Application for Employment Authorization or Form I-765 with supporting evidence and pay $380 in order to receive an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) or Form I-766.

H-4 dependent spouses must be the principal beneficiaries of an approved Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker or have been granted H-1B status to become eligible for EADs, the USCIS said in a statement.

Eligible individuals must submit their applications on or before May 26.

USCIS estimated that 179,600 individuals may apply for employment authorization this year and 55,000 annually in subsequent years.

The US announced changes in visa rules in May 2014 to encourage highly-skilled workers to remain in the country and "support US businesses" and its economy.

Nurses with specialized skills in particular were seen to benefit the most as such workers are needed to help in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare, among other health concerns in the US.

The US Department of State estimates that there are 4 million Filipinos living in the US. —Rie Takumi/KBK, GMA News

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