H-1B Visa Holders’ Spouses Can Work In The US

What’s going on:    

A major victory for foreign tech sector workers in the United States was secured recently when a judge ruled that spouses of H-1B visa holders could work in the country.  

US District Judge Tanya Chutkan dismissed a lawsuit launched by Save Jobs USA, who sought to overturn the Obama-era regulation that issued employment authorization cards to spouses of particular H-1B visa holders.  

Companies such as Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft had all been staunch opponents of the lawsuit.  

Approximately 1,00,000 work authorizations have been granted to the spouses of H-1B workers in the US thus far. 

Why it matters:  

The judge dismissed the lawsuit filed by Save Jobs USA, noting that the Department of Homeland Security had for some time allowed the spouses of foreign government officials, employees and officers of international organizations to apply for work authorization.  

How it’ll impact the future:  

The H-1B visa program, which permits the admission of skilled foreign workers to the US, had not previously extended the same benefit to its recipients’ spouses — a decision that would have had a negative impact on families’ finances. 

Now, these workers and their spouses both have the right to work in the US.  

Save Jobs USA declared its intent to challenge the court ruling through the appeals process.