The US had ended the ‘automatic extension of Employment Authorization Documents’ for certain foreign workers in October 2025. U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen, who had introduced a Congressional Review Act seeking to overturn the new rule, has again raised concerns about the rule on the social media platform X.
Rosen writes – The Trump Admin is trying to end automatic work permit extension for already vetted immigrants with legal status, forcing them to stop working or be fired by their employer.
I’m fighting back against this ill-conceived rule that will only harm our economy and hurt thousands of hardworking families.
Under the new rules, foreign workers who file to renew their EAD on or after October 30, 2025, will no longer receive an automatic extension of their ‘Employment Authorization Documents’ (EAD). The renewal process should initiate within 180 days of the expiry of the EAD. The up to 540-day automatic extension period only applied to renewal EAD applications filed before October 30.
Employers in the U.S. must ensure all foreign employees are authorized to work in the country by having an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766/EAD) serving as proof.
If an EAD is expiring or has expired, one needs to file for a renewal EAD by submitting a new Form I-765 and filing fee, unless a fee waiver is requested and approved, as soon as possible once the EAD is within 180 days of its expiration date.
By ending the automatic extension of Employment Authorization Documents, foreign workers who seek employment permission to work in the United States will be screened more frequently. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) believes that it will be able to prevent fraud and identify aliens with potentially detrimental intent so they can be processed for removal from the United States by reviewing a foreign worker’s past more frequently.
Due to long USCIS processing wait times, immigrants who submitted work permit renewal applications on time will be left without work authorization while they wait for their application to be processed – sometimes for many months at a time – risking immigrant workers’ ability to legally work, through no fault of their own, Rosen said in a statement.
It is always better to renew the EAD by filing a renewal application up to 180 days before expiration to avoid a temporary lapse in employment authorization or documentation. The interim final rule does not affect EADs automatically extended before October 30, 2025.
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