Can I Travel Abroad With My J1 Visa While My H1b Is in Process

An Employment Authorization Document, or EAD, is a special blazon of certificate available to certain visa holders. This document permits the visa holder to work – fifty-fifty when the visa would otherwise prohibit you from working.

Certain visas are designed to bring individuals to the United states for reasons other than work. You lot might be joining the family in the Us, for example. With an EAD, yous can legally work in the U.s.a. fifty-fifty if you lot do not specifically have a work visa.

There are two types of work permits available to non-residents of the United States:

Permanent U.S. work permit
Not-immigrant visa U.S. work permit

An EAD is specifically designed for non-immigrant visitors to the United States. Keep reading to discover everything you need to know about the EAD and how it works.

How Does a Non-Immigrant Employment Dominance Document Work?

A non-immigrant employment authorization document (EAD) allows you to work at any legal position in the United States while visiting the state on a non-immigrant visa.

An ordinary non-immigrant visa does non let you to work in the United states of america. Unless yous are arriving in the United States specifically to work – say, on an employer-sponsored H-1B visa – then your visa may non allow you to work in the United states of america. That's when y'all would consider getting an EAD.

You apply for an EAD. Once your EAD is canonical, you will receive the document. Information technology looks like a driver'due south license – just for work. You can show your EAD to a prospective employer to evidence that you have permission to work in the Usa.

If y'all are in the United States with a not-immigrant visa merely do non accept an Employment Authorization Certificate, so you may not be permitted to work. If you work in the United states of america without obtaining an EAD, so you may be deported.

Some of the most common visa holders who require an EAD include students in the United states and dependents (spouses and children) of U.S. piece of work visa holders. Green card holders (lawful permanent residents) do non require an EAD. Your green bill of fare is sufficient proof that you are authorized to work in America.

Employment Authorization Document Requirements

Not all non-immigrant visa holders qualify for an employment authorization document (EAD). The certificate is only available to visa holders that run across the post-obit requirements:

You are an aviary seeker or refugee in the U.s.a.
You lot are a dependent (spouse or child) of an asylum seeker or refugee in the Usa
You are a dependent (spouse or kid) of someone holding a not-immigrant (say, a traditional work visa)
You are a family-based non-immigrant in the United States on a fiancé visa or K-three visa, amidst other visas

Who Needs to Apply for an EAD?

Not all non-immigrants or immigrants in the Us require an EAD.

You lot practice not need to employ for an EAD if you are a lawful permanent resident of the United States (i.e. a light-green card holder). Your greenish menu is sufficient evidence that you are legally able to piece of work in the country.

Yous also exercise non need to apply for an EAD if y'all take a not-immigrant visa authorizing you lot to work for a specific employer (like an H-1B, L-1B, O, or P visa).

The following groups of people do, even so, require an EAD to work in the The states legally:

Yous need an EAD if yous are authorized to work in the Us because of your immigration condition (say, if you're an asylum seeker, a refugee, or a US non-immigrant) and need evidence of employment authorization
Yous demand an EAD if you are required to apply for permission to work and demand proof of employment say-so, including if you:
Have a pending Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status
Have a awaiting Grade I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal
You take a non-immigrant status that allows you to be in the United states of america but does not let you to work in the United States without first seeking approval from USCIS (say, as an F-1 or M-ane student visa holder)

Now that you have adamant whether or not you need an EAD, let's accept a closer look at the EAD application process.

How to Apply for an Employment Authorisation Document (EAD)

Step 1) File Form I-765

Form I-765, Application for Employment Authority, is the main form y'all need to file to receive your EAD. Yous can find the form on the website of Usa Citizenship and Immigration Services. Download the form and consummate it accurately. The form asks basic personal information, including specific information for different visa categories. Based on your answers and your visa category, you may need to provide different documents.

Step ii) Attach Supporting Documents

Near EAD applicants will need to attach extensive documents to their awarding to be qualified to work. These documents testify your legal status in the Us and demonstrate that yous are legally allowed to piece of work in the country. Supporting documents that may be required include:

Form I-94, Arrival/Departure record, including a copy of the front end and back of the course
A copy of your terminal EAD, if you take previously been issued ane
A copy of your government-issued ID (like a passport or license) if you have not previously been issued an EAD
Ii identical passport-style photos of yourself that were taken inside 30 days of beginning your EAD application
USCIS may request other documents based on your visa category.

Footstep 3) Pay the Fee and Attach Receipts

Your EAD awarding comes with approximately $500 worth of fees. You must pay the fees and attach the receipts to your awarding to continue. Your EAD will not be processed until you lot prove y'all have paid your fees.

Please note that certain categories of visa holders are exempt from paying this filing fee.

Step 4) Submit the Application

In one case you take completed Form I-765 and attached all supporting documents, it'south time to submit the application. Y'all can submit the awarding online through the USCIS e-filing process. Or, yous can post it to USCIS. Even if you employ online, you lot may demand to mail sure supporting documents to USCIS.

How Long Does Information technology Have to Process My EAD?

It takes as long as 90 days to process an average employment authorization certificate (EAD) application.

If your EAD is denied, then you will receive a observe explaining the reason you were not an eligible candidate. Otherwise, your EAD card should make it in the mail service inside xc days of submitting your application.

Once you have your EAD, it should remain valid for i year, after which you can renew it an indefinite number of times (although some visas restrict the number of times you tin can renew your EAD).

With your EAD, you tin can legally work any job in any field in the U.s.a.. You can apply for jobs equally you unremarkably would and work as an ordinary employee in an organization.

EAD Costs

There are ii chief fees to pay with your employment authorization document (EAD) application:

Filing fee ($410)
Biometrics fee ($85)

Altogether, your employment authorization document application costs $495. You can pay the fee online during your EAD e-application. Or, you can mail a check to USCIS.

Not All EAD Applicants Demand to Pay the Fee

Every bit mentioned in a higher place, non all visa holders are required to pay this fee. Some categories are exempt, including:

Asylum seekers, refugees, or those paroled as refugees
N-eight and N-9 non-immigrant visa holders
Citizens of Micronesia, Palau, and the Republic of the marshall islands
Victims of trafficking
Those granted withholding of deportation
U-1 non-immigrant visa holders
Dependents of those visiting the United States as part of a strange government, international organization, or NATO
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) self-petitioners

Meanwhile, if yous do not fall into any of the above categories, and then you can request a fee waiver from USCIS in certain situations. A fee waiver may be granted if:

You lot have supporting documents proving y'all or someone you live with is currently receiving a "ways-tested benefit"
Your annual household income is less than 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines at the time of your filing
You are experiencing financial hardships that preclude you from paying the fees, including unexpected medical bills or like emergencies

A "ways-tested do good plan" can include programs like Medicaid, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assist Program (SNAP or food stamps), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

Sure programs do non qualify as means-tested programs, including Medicare, Social Security benefits, unemployment benefits, Social Security Inability Insurance (SSDI), educatee fiscal aid/grants/loans, and retirement, survivors, and disability insurance (RSDI). If you are receiving help from any of these programs, then you lot practice not automatically authorize for the EAD fee waiver.

Not All EAD Applicants Demand to Pay the Biometrics Fee

Meanwhile, merely three groups of people will pay the biometrics fee, including:

Individuals requesting consideration for Deferred Activity for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
Those who have been approved for an employment-based immigrant petition and have compelling circumstances
Spouses or unmarried dependent children of beneficiaries who have approval for an employment-based immigrant petition with compelling circumstances

If you come across the to a higher place categories, then you may wish to file Form I-912, Asking for Fee Waiver. You will need to attach supporting documents to the form to prove y'all are eligible for the fee waiver.

How Long Does My EAD Last?

Typically, an EAD lasts for upwards to one yr.

When your EAD is nearing its decease engagement, you must file a renewal (if you wish to continue working). Your renewal can be filed within 180 days of the expiry date of your EAD.

Some types of visas allow you to renew your EAD as many times as you like. Other visas only let you to renew your EAD once.

Additionally, if your EAD is lost, stolen, or destroyed, and then you may request a replacement EAD past filing a new Form I-765 and filing fee (if required).

Ultimately, many non-residents of the United States require an employment authorization document (EAD) to prove they are legally able to work in the state. Many student visa holders require an EAD, for case, as do the dependents of other non-immigrant visa holders. The EAD application process is straightforward. Once yous receive your EAD, you tin can legally work at any job in the U.s.a. in whatever field.