The Trump administration is considering ending a work-authorisation programme that allows certain H-4 visa holders, including eligible spouses of H-1B workers, to work in the United States.
The proposal could have a significant impact on Indian families, who make up a large share of H-1B beneficiaries and H-4 employment-authorisation recipients. For now, however, existing H-4 work permits remain valid and no immediate change has taken effect.
What Are H-1B and H-4 Visas?
The H-1B visa allows foreign professionals to work in the United States in specialised occupations, while the H-4 visa is issued to their spouses and dependent children so they can live with them in the country.
An H-4 visa does not automatically allow a person to work. However, certain H-4 spouses can currently apply for an Employment Authorization Document, or EAD, if their H-1B spouse has reached specified stages of the employment-based green-card process. It is this work-authorisation provision that the Trump administration is considering reversing.
What change is the US government proposing?
The Department of Homeland Security has placed a proposal on its long-term regulatory agenda to remove certain H-4 dependent spouses from the category of non-citizens eligible to seek employment authorisation.
The proposal, listed under RIN 1615-AD14, seeks to reverse the 2015 rule that created the H-4 Employment Authorization Document pathway for eligible spouses.
An H-4 visa is issued to the spouse or dependent child of an H-1B non-immigrant worker. H-4 status allows family members to live in the US with the H-1B worker, but does not by itself provide employment rights.
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Who can currently work on an H-4 visa?
Under the existing framework, certain H-4 spouses can apply for an Employment Authorization Document if their H-1B spouse has reached specified stages of the employment-based green-card process.
The work permit allows eligible spouses to take up employment, change employers and earn an independent income while living in the United States.
The programme was introduced in 2015 against the backdrop of long waits for employment-based green cards.
Why could Indian families be affected the most?
Indian nationals account for a large majority of H-1B beneficiaries, making Indian families particularly exposed to any rollback of H-4 employment authorisation.
According to US Citizenship and Immigration Services data cited in the report, 71% of H-1B petitions approved in fiscal 2024 were for beneficiaries born in India. China accounted for about 12%.
The H-4 EAD population has also been heavily dominated by Indians and women. Earlier data showed that about 93% of approved initial H-4 EAD applications were for Indian nationals.
A Congressional Research Service analysis found that of roughly 126,853 H-4 EAD applications approved between 2014 and 2017, 93% were for Indian nationals and 94% were for women.
Why does the green-card backlog matter?
For many H-1B workers, particularly Indian professionals, the path from temporary employment to permanent residency can stretch for years.
The H-4 EAD programme allows eligible spouses to work during that period rather than remaining dependent on a single household income.
Ending the programme could therefore have consequences beyond the individual spouse, particularly for families that have built careers and financial plans around the ability of both partners to work in the United States.
Are existing H-4 work permits being cancelled now?
No. The current regulatory entry does not cancel existing H-4 EADs, terminate current work permits or stop eligible H-4 spouses from working immediately.
The proposal is classified as a long-term action, and the timetable for publishing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is listed as “To Be Determined”. No Federal Register notice has yet been issued for the proposal.
Before any policy change can take effect, DHS would have to publish a formal proposed rule, open it for public comment, review the responses and then issue a final rule with an effective date.
What could happen to current H-4 EAD holders?
The regulatory agenda does not yet explain whether existing EAD holders would be allowed to continue working until their permits expire, whether renewals would still be permitted, or how pending applications would be handled.
Those details would have to emerge through the formal rulemaking process.
The administration had previously pursued a proposal to rescind H-4 EAD eligibility during Trump’s first term, but that effort was withdrawn in January 2021 without taking effect.
For now, the H-4 EAD programme remains in force, and current holders continue to be governed by existing validity and renewal rules.
About the author — Ayesha Aayat writes on cybercrime, digital safety, and emerging online threats. Her work focuses on public awareness, legal clarity, and technology-driven risks.
