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ConfirmedAs of August 29, 2026

Proposed — not in force

Ending H-4 EAD is on the DHS agenda, with no date

DHS has entered a rulemaking in the Unified Agenda, RIN 1615-AD14, "Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses From the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorization". Its abstract says DHS "is proposing to remove from its regulations certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrant workers as a class of aliens eligible to request employment authorization under the (c)(26) category", reversing the 2015 final rule. The record lists its RIN status as "First time published in the Unified Agenda", its agenda stage as "Long-Term Actions", its timetable as "NPRM: To Be Determined" and its legal deadline as "None". The Unified Agenda uses "Long-Term Actions" for items an agency does not expect to act on within the twelve months after that edition. Asked directly for RIN 1615-AD14 on 29 August 2026, the Federal Register returned no documents at all.

What has not changed

The regulation in force is unchanged. The 2015 final rule, "Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses" (80 FR 10284), is still the rule, because nothing has replaced it. An entry in the Unified Agenda is a statement of intent and not law: it changes no eligibility, cancels no pending application, and shortens no card that has already been issued. There is no proposed rule, no comment period, no final rule and no effective date, and no court has been asked to rule on any of this. Reddit and Facebook posts saying H-4 work permits have ended are describing this agenda entry, and the entry does not say that.

What to do

Nothing today, and there is nothing available to do. No proposed rule text exists, so there is nothing to read, and no comment period is open, so there is nowhere to write. Do not withdraw a filing, cancel a renewal, resign a job or bring a plan forward on the strength of an agenda entry. If you hold an employment authorisation document, the dates printed on the card are the dates that apply to it. When DHS publishes a proposed rule, a comment period opens and that is where the public gets its say; we will publish the docket number and the closing date when one exists.

Next update

When DHS publishes a proposed rule for RIN 1615-AD14 in the Federal Register, or at the next edition of the Unified Agenda, whichever comes first. We re-read the record for this RIN by 30 September 2026 either way.

Sources