hmvsdog

It's EAD renewal time for the good lady and we have been debating the value of doing so, with our concurrent I-140/485 EB-1C application in the pipe. That application was submitted in late May 2017 with no movement on the case yet.

Here's the quandry. The wife's EAD expires in mid-July this year and thus we have a few options:

1) Wait for I-140 approval and hope that I-485 approval comes before July, thus negating the need for EAD renewal.
2) Renew category (a)(18) EAD that she is on now for a fee of ~$500.
3) Apply for a category (c)(9) EAD off the back of her pending I-485.

With option 3, I am really confused over whether there is a fee for this or not. I know that simultaneous filing of an I-765 with the I-485 does not attract the fee but she didn't do that. The following paragraph from the I-765 instructions can be read in one of two ways:

NOTE: If you filed Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, as of July 30, 2007, and you paid the Form I-485 filing fee, no fee is required to also file a request for employment authorization on Form I-765. You may file the Form I-765 with your Form I-485, or you may submit the Form I-765 at a later date. If you file Form I-765 separately, you must also submit a copy of your Form I-797C, Notice of Action, receipt as evidence of the filing of Form I-485 as of July 30, 2007.

Does this mean that the I-485 had to be pending on July 30 2007, or does it mean that after July 30 2007, there is no fee when you have a pending I-485?

Help??

S Folinsky

No fee required. It says what it says. No reason for confusion.

hmvsdog

Thanks. I guess I'm reading it the wrong way around. To me (in certain circumstances), this reads as "you must have had a pending application on July 30, 2007"

Olly_

Do this, and do it ASAP because they are taking almost 6 months to process EAD's at the moment. There will be no fee.

If your I-485 is approved before the EAD application gets looked at they just deny it because it's not required, there's no harm done.

hmvsdog

Thanks for the expedient advice. Her I-765 was deposited with USPS on Saturday afternoon, after i asked this question. This gives us a little over 4.5 months for the (c)(9) EAD to come through, the Green Card to come through, or her having to take a (hopefully short) sabbatical.

tom169

Renewal of an EAD under a (c)(9) if filed correctly will result in an automatic 180 day extension.

https://www.uscis.gov/working-united...-ead-extension

hmvsdog

That is true, but her original EAD is an (a)(18), not a (c)(9). So cannot be renewed into a (c)(9), it must be a new application under a different category.

tom169

That sucks.

Rete

How much longer does it take for a renewal vs a new EAD under a new application card. I don't believe it is much longer. I would definitely go with the new application which is at no cost since it was included with the original I-485 fee.

hmvsdog

And this is the information that I also saw at the time. However, arriving fresh in the mail today was the C09 EAD for my wife, just a matter of 5 weeks after we sent off the application. In this instance USCIS' seemingly random processing has worked in our favour!