On Jan. 31, 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection began endorsing the I-94s of spouses of E and L visa holders with new class of admission codes upon their entry to the United States. As we detailed in our Nov. 11, 2021 client alert, the new codes stem from immigration policy changes following a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Under the policy changes, E and L derivative spouses are now considered employment-authorized incident to status and are not required to apply for employment authorization documents (EADs). We expect the government to issue guidance in the coming days on how these endorsed I-94s can be used, in conjunction with an identity document, by L and E spouses to satisfy employers' I-9 requirements. We also expect the guidance to address the procedure to obtain the new endorsement on I-94s issued prior to Jan. 31, 2022. Once we have additional information to share, we will issue a follow-up client alert.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.