h4 ead application cover letter

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Green card calculator, sample cover letter for h4 ead.

I have consistently used the following sample cover letter for my H4 EAD applications, and I have not encountered any rejections. Please feel free to make any necessary modifications.

Thank you Dataneb for publishing this.

[Your name]

[Your mailing address]

[City, State, and Zip Code]

[Email address]

[Phone number]

To: United States Citizenship and Immigration Service

Re: H4 Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Application

Applicant: [Insert your name]

Alien-Number: [If applicable]

Dear Sir/Madam,

I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to formally request the processing of my H4 Employment Authorization Document (EAD) application. My name is [insert name] , and I was granted an H4 Visa on [insert date] based on my spouse's, [insert spouse's name] , valid H-1B Visa status, along with an approved I-140 Immigrant Petition.

Enclosed with this letter, you will find all the necessary supporting documents as outlined in the USCIS guidelines:

Application fees: Check in the amount of $520 payable to "U.S. Department of Homeland Security".

Completed and signed Form I-765.

Copies of my passport with visa pages.

Copies of my spouse's passport.

Copies of approved I-797 notices for both H4 and H1-B.

Copies of Form I-94.

Copy of marriage certificate (and translation if not in English).

Copy of my previous EAD (if any).

2 color photographs.

Completed Form G-1145.

I kindly request that USCIS process my EAD application at your earliest convenience. If there are any additional documents required or if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at [insert your address].

I appreciate your time and attention to this matter. Thank you for your consideration.

[Insert your name]

Next: Apply for H4 EAD

EAD for H4 Filing Experience – Check List, Covering Letter, How to Guide

Recently, one of my very good friend’s family filed for EAD with USCIS, under the recently passed EAD for H4 Rule . They were kind enough to share their EAD filing experience. Thanks to Siva and his family for sharing their short and sweet experience. You can share your experience by emailing us at [email protected] or using this form

Background:

We qualify for EAD for H4 under the I-140 approved category. The applicant is on H-4 Visa and currently residing in USA. The application was filed using the below set of documents.

EAD for H4 Documents Checklist :

EAD Application Fee check for $410 payable to “U.S. Department of Homeland Security”. ( Check USCIS website for most recent fee)
Completed form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization
Copy of my passport ( Front, Back and my VISA page )
I-797A Approved form – H4 Approval Notice from USCIS
I-797A My Spouse approved form (H1B Holder’s)
I-797 My Spouse approved I 140
Copy of I-94 of H4 holder
Copy of I-94 of H1B Holder
Copy of my husband’s passport ( H1B Holder’)
Copy of my Marriage Certificate
Copy of my ITIN number ( Individual Taxpayer Identification Number)
2 color passport photos ( 2×2 inches passport photos )
Completed Form G1145 (optional document, if you want to get e-notification as SMS or email alert from USCIS).

Instructions for Filing I-765 EAD form for H-4 Visa Holders

All the instructions to fill form are available at USCIS site

The EAD application for H4 visa holders is pretty straight forward. The answer for question 16 needs a bit of reading. Here are the suggestions.

Question 16 Eligibility Category: For H4 person who want to apply of EAD need to fill in like (C)(26)() . Do not worry about the blank parenthesis.
Question 18 Receipt Number : Answer to question 18 is the latest approved H1B approval receipt number of the H1B holder.
Also, The application fee check for $410 USD ( Check USCIS website for most recent fee)
ITIN number copy is not required.

Covering Letter for H4 EAD Application Sample

We have included a covering letter just to make sure, it lists all the documents as a general good practice. You may download the Sample H4 EAD Covering Letter.

Is there any other H4 EAD filing tip that you want to share? Add your thoughts as comments….

If you filed EAD for H4, please add your case to H4 EAD Case Tracker to share and track your case.

Other Articles

47 comments.

Do we need get attestation in i765 or it’s supporting documents ? This is for initial filling .

I am going to apply H4 EAD soon. Just like to know my husband I 797 approved from Texas center. So my new H4 ead will also get filed from same service center.

Kindly confirm

Regards sri

I am planning to apply h4 ead. But i dont have birth certificate. is it mandatory document? Or can i submit 10th/Adhar/ Any other evidence. Please let me know

I have all the documents and how should I submit the documents? which address should I mail it and which processing center is preferred.

H1B is visa extension is approved H4 Extension is still pending H4-EAD renewal needs to be applied.

Read Step3 of How to apply for h4 EAD

Can I apply for H4 EAD extension, while H4 extension is still in processing? it is been 3 months for H4 extension and it has not come yet, can I send the H4 EAD application to renewal (it is expiring next month).

Anything specific I need to do while doing this ?

You can do that, the only issue is that, if they look at H4 EAD first, then they will ask for H4 approval and may give RFE..if you do not send it, then it may get denied…

Good morning,can I know the fee I should submit for standalone h4 ead?

I see $410 but on few sites I see $495 which includes $85 biometric fee,my spouses h4 extension is approved recently but the h4 was submitted in Feb 2019 before the biometrics came into effect for h4

It is $410, if you only file H4 EAD. If you filed along with H4 Extension after Biometrics process, then that additional fee comes in. It does not apply to you as it was Feb.

Recently we got H1/h4 for 3 years but the passport of H4 is expiring 2020.

Does H4 EAD approval is based on the passport or H4 approved copy tenure?

Kindly revert

Usually, your I-94 is based on the expiry date on the passport. Nothing to worry, you can get it fixed. Check How to update I-94 after Passport Renewal

Thank you for quick reply.

My dependent passport is expiring in Sept 2020 but she got H4 ext until Jan 2022. Now if we apply for H4 EAD does they go by H4 apprved copy or passport Expiry date?

Usually, they try to give it until your I-94 valid date, which would be your passport expiry date. The logic is, you cannot work without having valid I-94 and status, hence that…

Hi Sandeep,

What was the outcome . Did your dependent got EAD based on passport date or H4 ext date until Jan 2022 ? I am in same category as well .

I am planning to change my status from OPT to H4 and applying for H4 EAD concurrently can you please mention the document checklist

Need help….

First name: Riya & Surname: Gupta

My Surname on passport is blank and Given name is ” Riya Gupta”. and on H4 Visa stamping/I-I-94 its “FNU Riya Gupta. On I-797/ US Driving license its ‘Riya Gupta’.

So now on I-765 EAD Form what name (First name? Family name?) should I use?

As you do not have your surname and it is blank on passport, you should follow this : First Name : FNU and your Last Name : Riya Gupta It is recommended to get it fixed to avoid future issues. You can read Surname Blank in Passport Issues – How to fix

USCIS website doesn’t mention anywhere that we need to submit H1B holder’s passport details.

I am applying for my wife EAD as she was on H4. And my question is that my Perm and I140 has been filed with my old address. I moved to new address recently, so what address should I mentioned in I-765 for my wife? I already filed AR-11 form (change of address)

I am planning to apply for EAD for my wife. She is on H4 visa but she does not have her own H4 version of I-797. Can I just submit my H1’s I-797 for her EAD? Please reply ASAP.

I am applying for H4 EAD for my wife but there is a possibility we might have to relocate while the application is being processed. Will updating USCIS with AR-11 form be enough or can I give my friend’s address instead so that he can receive it and mail me the document to us instead?

Thanks for your help in advance 🙂

Can someone answer this questions please?

Who should be signing the document under the ‘Certification’ section? Is the primary H1 holder or the spouse who is on H4 visa?

I had the same question too but if you thing about it, the first checkbox that you are checking says “I am applying for…..” . Hence I concluded it should be my wife (H4 holder) . Someone can correct me if I am wrong.

Hi I am applying for H4 EAD , my spouse H1 Transfer to new employer was approved and have a copy of the same where as my H4 case also approved with out any update on approval copy.

Can you suggest what can be done to get H4 approval copy ? Can i submit my EAD application with spouse H1B extension copy alone?

Just one page of approved I 140 copy (I-797) with priority date is sufficient for H4 EAD. My employer just provided that one page.

Thanks, Deepak

Is ITIN number for my wife compulsory when filing for her h4 ead.

It is not mandatory to submit ITIN when applying for H-4 EAD.

Do we need to submit the entire copy of H1b holder’s passport or just the bio and visa pages?

Just bio and visa pages.

Thanks Saurabh. I also have related questions.

Both I and my wife (h4) got our visas stamped during last India trip and we happened to renew our passports during the same trip. So the old cancelled passport has stamping for both of us. The old passport also has expired stamping of my previous employer. So do we need to submit all of the following:

1) New passport bio pages of both of us 2) Old passport bio (with cancelled stamp) and visa pages

So for point 2, do we need to submit visa stamping of old company as well as new company ?

Also they have listed the following identity documents that need to be submitted in the uscis site.

Birth certificate with photo, passport bio pages, visa stamping and national identity document. In this my wife doesn’t have birth certificate with photo and we are not sure about the national identity document (aadhar?). Is it enough if the passport bio page and visa page alone are submitted for this?

Yes, submit bio pages from both passports and all visa stamps (valid and canceled) from old passport. I don’t think the old company’s visa stamping is required, but better to share more than less.

You need to submit at least one of the docs from the list to establish the identity. Submitting bio page of the passport should be enough. Also, its Birth Certificate with Photo Id – it means you need to submit birth certificate and another document (like DL) having the photo. If the birth certificate has a photo, then that would be a baby photo 🙂

Hy I have received my approved I-140 , I applied H4 EAD for my spouse is it mandatory for my wife to stay in the country while the H4 EAD in process? please reply with your experience, as we have some immediate travel plans. Hope you are still monitoring this thread.

Did you get answer of this question?

Do we need I-94 copy of both ?

Shrikant patil,

Yes, submit I-94 copy of both H-1 and H-4 visa holder. If you don’t have one, you can generate it yourself online through CBP site.

My H1B is still under processing and I would like to apply for H4 EAD extension. Should I send the documents to USCIS Dallas or USCIS Vermont (as my H1 and spouse H4 is still under processing).

Hello, Do we need to send the original copy of spouse’s I797 form for H1-B and I797 for I140? Or just the photocopy is enough? Should we notarize all these photocopies? Thanks.

VIVEK CHANDRASEKARAN,

When submitting the EAD application, you need to submit copies of I-140 and 797. No need to notarize.

Thanks Saurabh for the quick response!

Hi, For a H4 EAD application have the following questions. Any help is greatly appreciated. 1) From the sample cover letter, is it safe to assume the order of stacking the documents is the order listed on the cover letter? 2) Is it ok to staple the documents or should we not? 3) Can we file it ourselves or should we go with a attorney ?

Kumar, 1. Just mention on the cover letter that “find following documents enclosed in this order” … 2. Don’t staple. Use the paper clip and bound them together. 3. You can do it yourself but if you are not comfortable then get an attorney. At times, H-1 holder’s attorney will do it for free (bill to H-1 employer)

Hi, I just wanted to know that can h4 visa holder will be eligable to work in usa,nd if its so then what would be the formality,

Why on earth there is no provision to extend L1 visa’s pending GC processing? With the stupid H1B lottery system, people that are on L1 visas for 5 years are forced to go through the lottery & leave the country. When H visa holders have the option of extending based on pending GC processing, why not L1?

Can you please suggest me on below situation..

My husband’s I-140 got approved last week but his H1B is going to expire on July 2nd 2015. Our I-94 is valid till March of 2016 though. He applied for H1B extension but employer did it on regular process, they are going to convert it into premium only after July 27th. Now my question is, if i want to apply for H4 EAD, how can i apply and when can i apply? And also can i apply for H4 EAD with only approved I-140? Please suggest me.

Thanks, Radhika

I am on h4 visa. How to apply and get h1b .

Well, this year’s quota is over. You can apply for next year quota that starts from April 1st of 2016. First, you need to find a job and then ask the employer to file H1B on your behalf.