NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Washington DC, August 5, 2024: On Friday, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld the legality of a rule allowing spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the United States. The decision marks a victory for immigrant families and tech companies, who have been closely watching the case.
The ruling came in response to a challenge by Save Jobs USA, a group representing US-born tech workers, who argued that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) exceeded its authority by permitting spouses on H-4 dependent visas to work. The organization contended that the rule undermined protections for American workers.
However, the three-judge panel, led by Judge Justin R. Walker, rejected this argument, citing a previous decision by the same court that had already addressed similar questions in favor of DHS. “Because Save Jobs USA has not meaningfully distinguished this case from that binding precedent, we affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment,” Walker wrote in the opinion.
The decision effectively preserves an Obama-era rule that allows approximately 90,000 spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the US. The rule had been under threat during the Trump administration, which had planned to roll back the program, although those efforts were never finalized.
The case, Save Jobs USA v. DHS, has been ongoing for nearly a decade, with the group arguing that the rule violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). They further claimed that recent legal developments, such as the Supreme Court’s ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, strengthened their case. However, the court dismissed these arguments, stating that the previous ruling in Washington Alliance of Tech. Workers v. DHS did not rely on the Chevron deference, but rather on a straightforward interpretation of the INA.
The ruling was supported by a coalition of tech giants, including Apple and Amazon, and business groups like the US Chamber of Commerce. These organizations have argued that work authorization for spouses is crucial for attracting and retaining skilled foreign workers in the United States.
Cover graphic: Canva
