The US Court of Appeals has upheld a ruling by the Obama administration allowing H4 visa holders – spouses of H1B visa holders – to apply for work in the US.
The decision, supported by major technology companies such as Google and Amazon, upheld a 2015 federal regulation introduced by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under the Obama administration.
The ruling said that H-4 visa holders – granted to dependents of H-1B visa holders – have the right to apply for temporary authorization to work in the United States.
The H-1B visa is a popular path for international students seeking employment in the United States after graduating from college. The nonimmigrant work visa allows U.S. companies to hire skilled foreign workers in jobs that require specialized skills. Graduates of programs such as MBAs and master’s degrees in business administration are eligible. A significant portion of H-1B visa recipients are Indian citizens.
Successful H-1B visa applicants can stay and work in the United States for three years, with the possibility of an extension for an additional three years. Major technology companies are among the main sponsors of the visa each year, sponsoring hundreds of H-1B visas to employ leading global talent.
These companies were therefore among the ruling’s key supporters, arguing that allowing H-4 visa holders to apply for work permits would ensure that highly skilled foreigners would be more inclined to stay in the United States and stimulate the economy rather than taking their talents elsewhere.
The H-4 visa is available to dependents of H-1B visa holders, including spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21. It allows them to reside in the United States until the end of the H-1B visa holder’s employment period.
To successfully obtain the H-4 visa, applicants must be able to prove that they are financially dependent on the H-1B visa holder and that they have no criminal record. After receiving the visa, you can apply for a work permit to come to the United States.
The cost to apply for an H-4 visa is $205, and applicants must complete a formal application process and visa interview before approval.
Since the 2015 DHS ruling, H-4 visa holders have been able to apply for work authorization in the United States, subject to approval by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). However, Save Jobs USA – an organization of tech workers who claim to have lost their jobs to H-1B visa holders – challenged the ruling in 2015, arguing that it would impact U.S.-born workers and that DHS did not have the authority to make the ruling.
Although it appeared that the rule would be repealed under the Trump administration elected in 2017, this ultimately never happened. Later, in March 2023, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia under the Biden administration affirmed the ruling.
The recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on August 2, 2024, made by a panel of three judges, was in response to another appeal by Save Jobs USA following the March 2023 ruling.
