US Tightens Work Permit Validity, Raising Fresh Uncertainty for Thousands of Indian Professionals

Washington, Dec 2025 : In a move poised to significantly impact hundreds of thousands of foreign workers, including a large proportion of Indian professionals and their families, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced sweeping reductions in the maximum validity of Employment Authorisation Documents (EADs). The agency said the revised policy is aimed at strengthening security vetting, deterring fraud, and detecting individuals who may pose potential risks while working in the United States.

Under the new policy framework, USCIS stated that the shorter duration of work permits will lead to “more frequent vetting of aliens who apply for authorization to work in the United States,” allowing authorities to better track individuals and, where necessary, initiate removal proceedings. The changes formally take effect for applications pending or filed on or after December 5, 2025.

USCIS Director Joseph Edlow linked the decision directly to concerns over public safety and national security. “Reducing the maximum validity period for employment authorization will ensure that those seeking to work in the United States do not threaten public safety or promote harmful anti-American ideologies,” he said. Referring to a recent violent incident in Washington involving National Guard personnel, Edlow added that the attack, carried out by a foreign national admitted during the previous administration, underscored the need for intensified screening.

The revised rules will have immediate consequences for several immigration categories that are widely used by Indian nationals. These include employment-based green card applicants, H-1B workers with pending adjustment of status cases, refugees, asylees, individuals granted withholding of removal, and those with pending asylum or withholding applications. For all these categories, the maximum EAD validity will now be limited to 18 months, sharply reduced from the earlier five-year validity.

In parallel, even stricter limits have been mandated under provisions of the recently enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1). These apply to individuals paroled into the United States, those granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS), applicants with pending TPS petitions, and spouses of entrepreneur parolees. For these groups, employment authorisation will now be capped at a maximum of one year, or the end of the underlying parole or TPS period, whichever occurs earlier. These provisions apply to all Form I-765 applications that were pending or filed on or after July 22, 2025.

In addition to reduced validity periods, the new law also introduces higher statutory filing fees. Certain initial work permit applications will now attract a mandatory fee of $550, while renewals will cost $275. Crucially, under H.R. 1, USCIS is barred from waiving these fees in most circumstances. A substantial portion of the revenue will flow directly into the US Treasury, with USCIS retaining only a limited share to fund its operations.

For Indian applicants trapped in decades-long employment-based green card backlogs due to per-country visa caps, the developments have triggered renewed anxiety. Many Indian professionals rely heavily on long-duration EADs and Advance Parole documents to continue working, travel internationally, and maintain family stability while awaiting permanent residency. With the sharp reduction in document validity and the elimination of automatic renewal protections, many fear repeated disruptions to employment.

Immigration attorney Emily Neumann warned that the policy shift will put added pressure on already overburdened processing systems. “Employment-based I-485 applicants will now see EADs issued for just 18 months instead of five years, effective December 5, 2025,” she said. “This will likely extend to Advance Parole as well. If renewals were adjudicated quickly, the change might not be crippling. But in reality, it simply creates more filings, which in turn worsens backlogs and delays.”

Neumann also cautioned that the end of automatic EAD renewal protection could result in large numbers of workers being forced off payroll due to administrative delays. “This will cause people to lose jobs for reasons completely unrelated to eligibility,” she added, calling the change disruptive for both workers and employers.

USCIS, however, defended the changes as necessary to enhance its screening and enforcement capabilities. The agency said the updated framework will improve fraud detection, strengthen vetting, and ensure that individuals with potentially harmful intent are placed into removal proceedings in a timely manner. The revised policy also formally rescinds elements of the agency’s September 27, 2023 guidance, which had allowed longer EAD validity periods.

The Indian diaspora, one of the largest beneficiaries of US employment-based immigration programs, is expected to be among the most heavily affected. Indian professionals dominate sectors such as information technology, healthcare, engineering, academia, and scientific research. For many of them, uninterrupted work authorisation is critical not only for financial stability but also for maintaining legal immigration status for entire families.

The changes also come at a time when USCIS is grappling with unprecedented backlogs across multiple visa and benefit categories. Applications for asylum, parole, TPS, and adjustment of status have surged in recent years, straining processing infrastructure. The reduced EAD validity periods will add tens of thousands of additional renewal filings annually, potentially compounding delays.

The new limits on work permits will take effect from December 5 for the 18-month validity categories and from July 22 for the one-year documents mandated under H.R. 1. The rules apply equally to both newly filed and already pending applications.

As Indian professionals and advocacy groups assess the full impact of the overhaul, immigration experts warn that unless USCIS dramatically improves adjudication timelines, the policy risks turning procedural delays into job-threatening crises for tens of thousands of skilled workers across the United States.

Team Maverick.