The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the Deferred Enforceable Departure (DED) for Hong Kong residents, which was set to expire on February 5, 2023, will be extended until February 5, 2025, VisaGuide.World reports.
According to the same authority, Hong Kong residents are covered by the DED based on the conditions described in a directive signed by President Biden. At the same time, they can apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) by filing Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization.
In the first month of this year, President Biden issued a memorandum extending and expanding the DED for some Hong Kong residents for only 24 months.
However, in a statement released last month, USCIS said that as of January 26, 2023, eligible Hong Kong residents covered by the DED may remain in the United States until February 5, 2025, and are also eligible to work in the US throughout this whole period.
“Offering safe haven for Hong Kong residents who have been deprived of their guaranteed freedoms in Hong Kong furthers United States interests in the region. The United States will continue to stand firm in our support of the people in Hong Kong,” the memorandum of President Biden reads.
Moreover, the memorandum called on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to also extend the employment authorization for Hong Kong residents covered by the DED and to ensure the prompt issuance of new or replacement documents in appropriate cases.
In this regard, DHS provides travel authorization assurance at its discretion for those covered by DED for Hong Kong. In addition, individuals who wish to travel outside the US under DED must file Form I-131, Application for Travel Document, to request advance parole.
The agency also announced that it is automatically extending the validity of DED-based EADs in Hong Kong until February 5, 2025, for those who already have an EAD with an A-11 category code on the card and an expiration date of February 5, 2023.
On the other hand, USCIS emphasized that even though the expiration date on the card page has passed, these EADs remain valid. This means that a person does not need to apply for a new EAD to benefit from this automatic EAD extension. However, for those who want a new DED-based EAD that shows a card expiration date of February 5, 2025, they must submit Form I-765.
The post US Extends Employment Authorization for Hong Kong Residents Covered by Deferred Enforced Departure Until Feb. 2025 appeared first on VisaGuide.World.
