On 10/29/2025, the Department of Homeland Security announced an interim final rule that will end the practice of automatically extending EADs (employment authorization document cards) for individuals filing renewal applications in most EAD eligibility categories. The rule will take effect on October 30, 2025.
Note that the interim final rule does NOT apply to individuals who have already received an automatic extension of their EAD based on a pending renewal application, OR to extensions based on Temporary Protected Status (TPS). It also does NOT apply to F-1 students with a pending STEM OPT extension application, since automatic STEM OPT EAD extensions are based on a different regulation that is not affected by this interim final rule.
Please refer to the USCIS announcement for additional details.
The International Center will continue to monitor all developments in this area and will update this news alert as warranted.
Updated 11/3/2025 to reflect USCIS clarification regarding impact on STEM OPT applicants.