The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has unveiled a significant alteration in the procedure for renewing work authorizations for immigrants, a change that stands to impact millions of individuals with non-permanent immigration status.

Starting October 30, 2025, the automatic extension of Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) will be discontinued, except for a few specific exceptions.

This initiative, driven by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), revises a policy enacted in 2022 that allowed certain immigrants to keep working while their renewal applications were under review.

The updated regulation aims to terminate the practice of automatically extending work permits for renewal applicants, instead emphasizing thorough background checks and security evaluations.

In a statement released on their official website, USCIS highlighted their renewed focus: "USCIS is placing a renewed emphasis on background checks and security investigations, doing away with policies set by the previous administration that prioritized convenience for foreigners over the safety and security of Americans."

Joseph Edlow, the director of USCIS, underscored the restrictive nature of this policy by stating, "All foreigners must remember that working in the United States is a privilege, not a right."

Under this change, applicants will no longer receive an automatic extension of their EAD while their application is pending, diverging from the 2022 policy which granted a 540-day extension to address the backlog in application processing.

At the time, USCIS was dealing with a record-breaking nine million petitions, over 360,000 of which were work permit requests from asylum seekers.

This new rule broadly affects nearly all individuals without permanent legal status who rely on renewable work permits. Key groups impacted include:

The only exceptions to this new rule are those stipulated by law or explicitly announced through Federal Register notices, mostly linked to TPS.

The cessation of automatic extensions will require each applicant to undergo individual and more stringent verification before being able to continue working legally.

This introduces new delays and uncertainty for thousands already facing lengthy wait times. USCIS has warned that those who do not renew their EADs well in advance risk temporary loss of work authorization.

They recommend submitting renewal applications up to 180 days before the current document's expiration date: "The longer a foreign national waits to file the renewal application, the greater the likelihood of a temporary interruption in their employment authorization or documentation."

Currently, according to agency figures, a renewal can take:

This poses a significant barrier for those dependent on work permits not only to sustain themselves but also to access essential services like driver's licenses, bank accounts, or medical services.

Various organizations and immigrant rights advocates have voiced concerns over the social and economic impact of this measure.

Ezequiel Hernández, an immigration attorney in Arizona, warned: "It will essentially affect vulnerable individuals who need their licenses and work permits up-to-date. It's an additional burden on immigrants."

Conchita Cruz, co-executive director of the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP), noted that while the immediate impact on asylum seekers might be limited -- since many have already received extensions -- the long-term implications will be widespread: "It's another step against people who are here working legally and contributing to their communities. It will not only impact these individuals but also their families, employers, colleagues, and communities, because some provide critical services."

Moreover, Cruz and other experts question the legality of the implementation process, arguing that the DHS did not follow the proper legal procedures for introducing a new regulation. "They are requesting public comments after having changed the law. That's not how it works," she asserted.

The decision by USCIS marks a shift in U.S. immigration policy that could herald a new era of increased scrutiny, bureaucracy, and restrictions for immigrants with provisional status.

Eliminating the automatic extension of work permits will disrupt the job stability, economic security, and emotional well-being of thousands of families legally residing in the country, who are at the mercy of an already overwhelmed administration.