USCIS Extends Work Permit Validity to Two Years for Refugees and Certain Other Aliens

Under a new update to USCIS policies, refugees and asylees may now renew their work permits in two-year increments; previously, such permits would have to be renewed annually. USCIS stated in the release that the purpose of the update was to address lengthy processing delays.

Under these updated protocols, all refugees, foreign nationals granted asylum, aliens who self-petitioned for green cards under a program for domestic abuse survivors, and certain other illegal aliens with deportation relief will now be allowed to extend their U.S. work permits two years at a time.

Additionally, Roll Call reports, “The change would also allow some immigrants with temporary deportation protections to have work permits that remain valid until their protections expire.”

USCIS spokesman Matt Bourke stated:

is expected to reduce processing times and allow USCIS to concentrate efforts on its pending application caseload. These steps are just the beginning and USCIS will continue to work with urgency to bring down processing times across the board.

USCIS has recently made other changes to “reduce the backlog,” including allowing the spouses of certain visa holders to skip applying for their own work permits – simply including them with the visa holder, and exempting a massive number of aliens from the fingerprinting requirements.

This slew of changes is in response to the DHS’s request for public comment on “how to improve the legal immigration system, including by making it more efficient and accessible,” reports Roll Call. The April request itself responded to Biden’s Feb. 2 executive order calling to “restore faith in the U.S. immigration system.”

For the complete story, please visit Roll Call.