Effective July 28, applicants for employment authorization under category (c)(11) — individuals paroled into the United States for urgent humanitarian reasons or reasons of significant public benefit under INA 212(d)(5) — may file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization online.
What to Expect
- To file Form I-765 online, eligible applicants must create a USCIS online account, my.uscis.gov.
- If an applicant submits Form I-765 online to request employment authorization but is not filing under an eligible employment authorization category, USCIS may deny the application and retain the fee.
- Applicants who file the paper Form I-765, or any other USCIS form, can still create an online account to track the status of their form throughout the adjudication process, even if they did not file the form online.
- Applicants seeking a filing fee waiver or those eligible for a fee exemption, such as Afghan nationals paroled through Operation Allies Welcome and filing an initial Form I-765, must continue to submit Form I-765 by mail.
Erickson Insights
USCIS has prioritized digitalizing its forms and shifting to online processing to streamline and reduce wait times. Review the complete list of Forms Available to File Online and Form I-765 instructions for more information. Erickson Immigration Group will continue to share updates as more news is available. If you have questions about anything we’re reporting above or case-specific questions, please contact your employer or EIG attorney.