US lawmakers seek rollback of Trump policy impacting Indian H-1B spouses

A powerful bloc of US senators has stepped in to challenge a Donald Trump-era immigration rule that threatens to upend the livelihoods of thousands of legal workers — a move with particularly sharp consequences for Indian nationals, especially spouses of H-1B visa holders who make up a significant slice of the affected workforce.

Led by senator Alex Padilla of California, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, lawmakers have introduced a resolution in the Senate to overturn a US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) rule that scraps automatic renewals of work permits for certain noncitizens. Padilla is joined by Senator Jacky Rosen of Nevada and nine other colleagues in invoking the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to roll back the policy.

The interim final rule, announced on 30 October, dismantles automatic extensions of employment authorization documents for 18 categories of noncitizens — including refugees, individuals granted asylum or temporary protected status, and spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants. For many Indian families living legally in the United States, the change threatens to sever a crucial economic lifeline.

Work permits are the legal thread that allows noncitizens to remain employed. But senators backing the resolution warn that chronic processing delays at USCIS mean even those who apply for renewals on time could be forced off payrolls for months while their paperwork languishes — through no fault of their own.

Lawmakers say the stakes are enormous. By their estimates, the rule would affect 87 per cent of all pending work permit renewals, potentially sidelining thousands of workers who have already been vetted, approved, and integrated into the American workforce — simply because their applications are stuck in bureaucratic limbo.

Until the Trump administration’s intervention, timely renewal filings automatically triggered extensions, ensuring continuity of employment while applications were processed. The CRA resolution seeks to restore that safeguard and prevent what senators describe as needless economic disruption.

“Donald Trump and Stephen Miller’s campaign to marginalise noncitizens working here legally is disrupting our entire national economy and devastating employers who rely on their contributions,” Padilla said, calling the rule self-defeating and punitive.

He added that stripping work authorization from individuals who have already been screened and approved “forces people to lose their livelihoods for no reason other than government delay.”

Indian professionals and their families stand among the most exposed to shifts in US employment-based immigration policy. Spouses of H-1B visa holders are deeply embedded in sectors such as technology, healthcare, finance, education, and research — and in many households, uninterrupted work authorisation is essential to financial stability.

Rosen warned of immediate and far-reaching economic fallout if the rule is allowed to stand. “Immigrants who work and contribute to our economy are central to Nevada’s prosperity — and the backbone of the US economy,” she said.

She described the rule as a recipe for chaos, one that could force thousands of legally authorised workers to stop working or face termination, rippling harm through families, employers, and the broader economy.

The resolution is co-sponsored by Senators Michael Bennet, Chris Coons, Catherine Cortez Masto, Dick Durbin, Angus King, Adam Schiff, Jeanne Shaheen, Chris Van Hollen, and Peter Welch.

Under the Congressional Review Act, Congress can nullify recently finalised federal regulations through a joint resolution of disapproval within a narrow window. If passed by both chambers and signed into law, the measure would strike down the USCIS rule — and bar the agency from issuing a substantially similar one in the future.

With IANS inputs