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H4 EAD Eligibility for Spouse of H1B (Canadian Citizen)

Jadoo1155

Newbie
May 10, 2016
7
1
Does Person A who only has a Canadian permanent residency and not a Canadian passport, But is married to Person B a Canadian citizen and is getting H1B for the first time to work in America, can Person A apply for work authorization without waiting for an approved i-140 petition for person b?

I'm asking because I have heard that the Canadian citizens are exempted from certain H1B regulations/restrictions. And their spouses can get work authorization to work in the US even if the primary H-1B holder does not have an approved i-140 form.

Is this correct?
 
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Rawhide

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Nov 11, 2017
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Does Person A who only has a Canadian permanent residency and not a Canadian passport, But is married to Person B a Canadian citizen and is getting H1B for the first time to work in America, can Person A apply for work authorization without waiting for an approved i-140 petition for person b?

I'm asking because I have heard that the Canadian citizens are exempted from certain H1B regulations/restrictions. And their spouses can get work authorization to work in the US even if the primary H-1B holder does not have an approved i-140 form.

Is this correct?
I have no clue, but it will be interesting to watch this thread. Do you have any links ?
 

walter_white

Hero Member
Aug 30, 2019
307
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Does Person A who only has a Canadian permanent residency and not a Canadian passport, But is married to Person B a Canadian citizen and is getting H1B for the first time to work in America, can Person A apply for work authorization without waiting for an approved i-140 petition for person b?

I'm asking because I have heard that the Canadian citizens are exempted from certain H1B regulations/restrictions. And their spouses can get work authorization to work in the US even if the primary H-1B holder does not have an approved i-140 form.

Is this correct?
This is not correct. H1B/H4 rules are same for everyone and to obtain H4 ead, your spouse still require you to have an approved i140. The only relaxation you get is that a Canadian citizen (not permanent residents from visa required countries) wouldn't need a physical visa in your passport to enter the US. However, Canadian citizens (again not permanent residents) are eligible to obtain TN visa, which is an entirely different visa as opposed to H1B.