Secretary Chertoff: We Will Start Issuing 2-Year EADs

Many of our clients are complaining of the need to renew their employment authorization documents (EADS) every year while their green card adjustment of status application is pending. Given the long backlogs, the need to extend EADs every year becomes a hassle and, especially for those applicants who have to pay for each application, a financial burden.

DHS Secretary Chertoff, in remarks at the “State of Immigration” address, noted that beginning June 2008, DHS will start issuing 2-year EADs for applicants whose adjustment of status petitions if such petitions are expected to be pending for more than one year. His precise remarks are:

“Beginning later this month, we’ll start issuing these documents with a two-year validity period for aliens who are waiting adjustment of status if their application is expected to be pending for more than a year.

..

This, again, is eliminating a persistent source of frustration for workers who are here, who have a pending adjustment application but have to go and renew their employment documents every single year. It’s going to cut the paperwork there.“

Full text.

The speech does not address details such as the exact date of when this change would take effect and whether advance parole (AP) extensions would also be extended in 2-year terms. We will continue monitoring developments in connection with Secy. Chertoff’s statement and update our clients and readers as we know more. Readers can subscribe to our newsletter to obtain email notification of recent developments.