United States | DHS proposes regulatory changes to employment authorization rules for asylum applicants

Today, the Department of Homeland Security published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register that would modify regulations governing asylum-related employment authorization.

Key takeaways:

Summary of overall proposed provisions. The NPRM states the proposed changes will “modify regulations governing applications for asylum and withholding of removal (asylum applications) and employment authorization based on a pending asylum application.”

Proposed limits on asylum-based work authorization. DHS has proposed multiple changes to employment authorization rules for asylum applicants, including:

• Amending filing and eligibility requirements for individuals requesting Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) based on a pending asylum application, including requiring the submission of biometrics;
• Pausing acceptance of EAD applications from asylum applicants during periods when the average affirmative asylum processing time exceeds 180 days;
• Extending the waiting period to apply for employment authorization to 365 days; and
• Changing EAD application processing time requirements and prioritizing “asylum applications for adjudication if [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] finds derogatory information during the process of the adjudication.”

Public comment period. Public comments regarding the proposed rule can be submitted here and must be received on or before April 24, 2026.

Existing regulations remain in effect. Until a final rule takes effect, existing asylum-based employment authorization regulations remain in place.

Additional information: According to the related DHS announcement, “The proposed rule supports President Trump’s Executive Order 14159, ‘Protecting the American People Against Invasion.’”

BAL will continue to monitor related developments and provide updates.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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