US to issue Work Permits to Immigrants with 5+ years of wait time for Green cards

A sigh of relief for Green Card applicants

• Candidates that have applied for the green card and have been waiting for over five years may now have work permits issued to them.
• A presidential advisory commission has discussed the possibility of issuing employment authorization cards in the early stages of Green Card application.
• If the policy is implemented, the DHS-USCIS will grant candidates with travel documents and Employment Authorization Documents (EADs).

• Only candidates with sanctioned I-140 employment-based visas can obtain the EADs and travel documents.
• The EB-1, EB-2 & EB-3 categories of visas with I-140 petitions qualify for the new program.
• The issuance of work permits will majorly benefit applicants who have been waiting for the status of their green card for over five years.
• Members of the President’s Advisory Commissioner for Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Commission held a detailed discussion on the proposal moved by an eminent Indian-American community leader and its member Ajay Jain Bhutoria, who in his presentation highlighted the challenges faced by H-1B visa holders in the United States.

The new idea was suggested keeping in mind the long waiting hours faced by the highly skilled foreign workers that include Indians, regarding the processing of immigrant visas.