Work Visa Processing Delays: Taking Away Immigrants’ Ability to Work and Hurting Our Economy

Under Trump’s leadership, extensive visa processing backlogs and delays at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) are impacting immigrants’ ability to obtain work permits. Given that many visa categories require proof of a pending application or confirmation from USCIS to qualify for a work permit, any delays directly impact an immigrant’s ability to apply for a work permit, earn a living, support their family, and contribute to our economy.

In the past, immigrants holding many types of work permits received automatic extensions of those permits while applying for renewals to avoid a lapse in authorization due to processing delays. However, the Trump Administration removed that automatic extension, which will make it unjustifiably harder for workers with legal status to continue working – even if an individual applies for a work permit extension as soon as they are able, they could still lose their authorization through no fault of their own.

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In the spring, I forced a vote on my resolution to restore the automatic extension and keep people working. While my effort received bipartisan support, the vast majority of Senate Republicans shamefully opposed and blocked it.

The impacts of visa processing delays and chances in policy aren’t hypothetical – the New York Times recently wrote about how some immigrants who have legally worked in elder care facilities for years have lost work authorization because their visa renewals aren’t being processed in time, meaning they lose their jobs and nursing homes lose dedicated, experienced workers. You can read that story here.

Many industries – like health care and construction – that are already understaffed will lose employees if these processing delays continue. When we have fewer workers, prices go up.

For this reason, I’ve urged USCIS to address the severe backlogs of applications. Here’s some of what I wrote in my letter:

These delays are impacting the timely processing of Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applications and renewals, with a backlog of nearly 12 million visa applications at USCIS. Due to the growing backlog, it is possible that USCIS can receive a visa application on time, but not issue a receipt in a timely manner, leaving the applicant without the necessary proof to obtain a work authorization, at no fault of their own.

These delays are concerning given that many of these individuals are working in critical industries, including healthcare, education, and construction, where a gap in employment can have significant impact not only for working families, but also for the communities and local economies that rely on their contributions. When EAD’s are not issued in a timely manner due to staffing shortages and lack of resources, recipients lose employment authorization, employers experience workforce disruptions, and families struggle to support themselves as jobs in the community go unfilled.

USCIS needs to rectify these processing delays to keep legal workers working.

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