In his State of Immigration address on June 9, 2008, DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff announced that US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) would soon begin issuing multi-year Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) to certain applicants for adjustment of status:

Currently, adjustment applications are granted employment authorization documents with only a one year maximum validity. 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.

Specific guidelines on how the new EADs will be issued have yet to be published. Based on the Secretary's comments, it appears that individuals who have a pending I-485 application and where their priority date is not current, or the case cannot be approved within the next year for other reasons, will be eligible for a two-year EAD card.

Please note that the two year EAD card will only be issued to persons who have a pending I-485 application that is not expected to be approved within a year - not all I-485 applicants will be eligible for the two-year EAD card.

Jackson & Hertogs will provide additional information as it becomes available.

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