In a notice of proposed rulemaking released late Friday, the Department of Homeland Security resurrected—and expanded—a 2020 plan to tighten Employment Authorization Document (EAD) access for asylum seekers. Under the draft rule (RIN 1615-AC97), applicants would:
• Wait 365 days after filing an affirmative asylum claim before submitting Form I-765 (current wait: 150 days).
• Face an automatic freeze on new EAD filings whenever average asylum-case processing times exceed 180 days—a benchmark already surpassed since mid-2024.
USCIS says the measures will discourage “frivolous” applications and help reduce a backlog of 1.4 million asylum cases. Advocacy groups counter that cutting off lawful employment will push people into the underground economy and strain city budgets that provide shelter and food assistance. Employers that rely on asylum-category work authorization—particularly in hospitality, agriculture and elder-care—warn of labour shortages.
![DHS Proposes One-Year Wait and Filing Freeze for Asylum Work Permits]()
The regulation opens a 60-day public-comment window. If finalized, companies may need to shift hiring toward other visa classes (e.g., H-2B) or invest in automation to offset workforce gaps. Municipalities like New York and Chicago, already grappling with large asylum-seeker populations, could see support-service costs soar.
Immigration attorneys recommend screening current employees whose EAD renewals might now lapse and preparing contingency travel policies, as international assignments could become impossible once work authorization expires. The rule also proposes steeper fraud penalties, increasing the risk profile for employers that inadvertently hire ineligible workers.
• Wait 365 days after filing an affirmative asylum claim before submitting Form I-765 (current wait: 150 days).
• Face an automatic freeze on new EAD filings whenever average asylum-case processing times exceed 180 days—a benchmark already surpassed since mid-2024.
USCIS says the measures will discourage “frivolous” applications and help reduce a backlog of 1.4 million asylum cases. Advocacy groups counter that cutting off lawful employment will push people into the underground economy and strain city budgets that provide shelter and food assistance. Employers that rely on asylum-category work authorization—particularly in hospitality, agriculture and elder-care—warn of labour shortages.
The regulation opens a 60-day public-comment window. If finalized, companies may need to shift hiring toward other visa classes (e.g., H-2B) or invest in automation to offset workforce gaps. Municipalities like New York and Chicago, already grappling with large asylum-seeker populations, could see support-service costs soar.
Immigration attorneys recommend screening current employees whose EAD renewals might now lapse and preparing contingency travel policies, as international assignments could become impossible once work authorization expires. The rule also proposes steeper fraud penalties, increasing the risk profile for employers that inadvertently hire ineligible workers.
Source: Bloomberg Law
