Clarification of Discretionary Employment Authorization for Certain Aliens
This is a PROPOSED rule. It is not in force, may change before finalisation, and may never be finalised.
Where it stands
Proposed
Jun 5, 2026
Final rule
None in our archive
What the document says
The Department of Homeland Security proposes to limit and clarify eligibility for discretionary employment authorization for aliens paroled into the United States temporarily for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit, who have been granted deferred action, or against whom a final order of removal exists and who are temporarily released from custody on an order of supervision. DHS further proposes to specify that aliens applying for employment authorization who admit to committing, have been arrested for, or have been convicted of certain criminal acts do not warrant a favorable exercise of discretion unless there are significant countervailing public interests, which may include assisting law enforcement activity in the United States.
Who the document names
Visa categories
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, Asylum, F-1 academic student
Where the document says this
- Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals: “The specific changes proposed to 8 CFR 274a.12(c)(14) do not apply to employment authorization based on a grant of DACA, which is authorized under 8 CFR 274a.12(c)(33), or to employment authorization based on a grant of deferred action to an applicant for T nonimmigrant status, and eligible family members, who have…”
- Asylum: “In the proposed Asylum EAD Reform rule, 91 FR 8616, DHS seeks to amend 8 CFR 274a.13(a)(1) so that USCIS would have discretion to grant applications for employment authorization filed by aliens applying for asylum pursuant to 8 CFR 274a.12(c)(8) in keeping with its discretionary statutory authority under section…”
- F-1 academic student: “An alien who fails to establish that he or she is employed by or is seeking employment with a U.S. employer who is a participant in good standing in E-Verify would not be eligible for renewal of his or her employment authorization and an EAD. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------…”
This document sets the rule but leaves the specific list of who it covers to a separate government determination. The list is not in this document, so we do not show one here. Check the issuing agency's own published list. “It also created an expedited removal process for aliens who do not have proper documents or who make material misrepresentations and who are arriving in the United States, or, as designated by the Secretary, aliens who have not been inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States and cannot prove continuous presence in the United States for at least 2 years.\113\ By passing…”
A requirement the document states
“DHS also proposes to clarify that all aliens applying for employment authorization under 8 CFR 274a.12(c) must submit biometrics, that an alien's identity must be validated before issuing any employment authorization, and that, generally, situations where aliens have been arrested, indicted, or convicted of any criminal act, or who have admitted to committing a violent or dangerous crime, or…”
The document publishes this as a closed list. Whether it applies to a particular person depends on facts this record does not have.
Follow and explore
From the countries and visa categories the document names.
- F-1 OPT application window · recurs each year for F-1
Annual dates, shown for context. This document does not set them.
Explained
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About this record
- Source
- Federal Register, checked Sep 3, 2026
- Review
- Classified automatically; not reviewed by a person
Built from the linked government document by published rules, not by a language model. Information about a published document, not legal advice about anyone’s case. Methodology · Permalink