According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), it has received numerous reports from clients and members saying that they are receiving approved employment authorization documents (EADs) from USCIS, but they do not include advance parole (AP) travel authorization, even though the applicant requested both benefits. Previously, when an applicant requested both an EAD and AP travel authorization, USCIS would issue “combination cards” that included both employment and travel authorization in one document.
USCIS has advised AILA that the processing change is necessary to allow for the agency to work through the EAD backlog and it is trying to prioritize EAD adjudication to decrease or avoid applicants having lapses in employment authorization. There was no additional information available on the duration or scope of this change in USCIS’s procedures.
AILA has said that it is going to reach out to USCIS to find out more about current EAD and AP procedures and provide updates as soon as it hears back. Keep in mind that even though an AP and EAD maybe adjudicated and issued together, USCIS is not obligated to do so.
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