Border Bill 2024: H4 EAD, More Green Cards, Protect Age Out Kids

A bipartisan US Border Security bill was recently introduced in the Senate. It is a huge bill, which is 370 pages long, that addresses many things, ranging from funding for Ukraine to giving more green cards. In the interest of our readers, in this article, we will cover only the key provisions in the Bill related to H1B, H4, and Green Cards.

Background: Border Security Bill with Support for Ukraine, Israel

The bipartisan Border Security Bill has been in negotiation for a while, and finally, they have put up the text of the Bill for everyone to review. It has a massive spending of $118 Billion aimed at border security and support for Ukraine and Israel.

Also, as part of the Bill, they have included some provisions for Non-immigrant workers such as H4 holders and Green Card applicants. Below are the official details of the bill for your review

• Bill Name: Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024
• Bill Text: 370 Pages
• Official Bill Text: Senate.gov Emergency National Security Supplemental Bill Text

Border Security Bill Provisions for Non-immigrants

The Border Security Bill has provisions for non-immigrants in the below areas:

• Addition of Family-based, Employment-based Green Cards for 5 years
• Employment Authorization for certain H4 Holders – Children
• Age out protections for H4 dependent kids
• Visitor Visa (B Visa) can be used for family visit

Let’s look at each of these topics now,

Addition of Family-based, Employment-based Green Cards

As per the Bill text, it will add additional Green Cards in both Family-based and Employment-based categories for the next five years. Below is exactly how many they will add by year

• Family-based Green Cards: The Bill will add 32,000 additional family-based green cards per every year for five years, starting from FY 2025 until FY 2029. The family-based green card total number would be 512,000 annually, increasing from 480,000 annually.
• Employment-based Green Cards: The Bill will add 18,000 additional employment-based green cards every year for five years, starting from FY 2025 until FY 2029. The employment-based green cards total number would be 158,000 per year, increasing from 140,000 per year.
• No changes to per-country caps: There are no changes to the 7% per-country caps and they will continue to be in effect as the bill does not talk about them.

Below is the screenshot of the actual bill text that talks about the above

Employment Authorization for Certain H4 Dependents

The Bill adds provisions of Employment Authorization for H4 Dependents, both Spouses and Children, whose primary H1B holder has an approved I-140 (Green card or immigrant petition) with USCIS. Also, it says that they would be able to use this provision without the need to apply for EAD explicitly, but rather incident to status, which means based on I-94. Technically, if they valid I-94 and approved I-140, then they can work based on valid I-94.

The H4 EAD provision existed in the past, but this new provision adds Children to the employment provision, to enable H4 college kids to work, while waiting for Green Card. See the below exact text from the Bill and the White House Factsheet from WH.gov

Age-out Protection for H4 Dependent Kids

Currently, children of employment-based green cards have always been struggling with the “age out” situation, where they lose out on the parent’s green card application process after they reach 21 years of age.

As part of the Bill, H4 dependent children under 21 years of age who have been on H4 dependent status for the last eight years in the US are eligible to qualify as children for the purpose of the Green Card application. Also, they would get work authorization to work in the US as a H4 dependent purely based on status, which is nothing but I-94 and no need to apply for EAD. The condition is that they should apply for Green Card within two years, when the priority date becomes current.

See the below actual provisions text from the Bill text

Visitor Visa(B Visa) to Visit Family of Citizens, Green Card Holders

As of now, the US Visitor Visa, B Visa (B1/B2) is issued only for two purposes, either Business or Pleasure. This is a problem for family members residing abroad who want to visit anyone in the US who is a US citizen or Green Card holder. Their visitor visa used to be denied as there was no such direct provision.

With this bill, they are adding “Family purposes” to the visitor visa purposes, which will open doors for all such family members who are visiting their family with US Citizenship or Green Card.

Below is the screenshot of the actual text from the Bill on the above

Next Steps? What are the Chances for the Bill to become Law?

One important thing to note is the Bill has not yet been voted in Senate or in House. It has a very long way to go. It has to go through a set of 9 Steps. Check How does a Bill become Law in the US from House, Senate.

The Bill is in the early stages, and many things may change. As of now, there is stiff opposition to the Bill, some saying that they may not even introduce it in the House. The Voting in the Senate is set to happen soon.

The big items in the Bill, such as border-related measures, are bigger things of discussion, and many things may change. We need to wait and see if the Congress will change any of these provisions in the bill as well.

Many Bills like the above have come and gone without much traction in the past, but due to the nature of the Bill, the current bill has better odds if both of the parties can agree on something around Border Security.

What do you think of the Bill? What do you think of the chances? Share your thoughts in comments section below.