L2 visa and L2 EAD pending

[bunnysriram94]

Hi,
I'm on L1 visa and my wife is on L2 with EAD. Both our visa will expire in April. Our law firm has applied for extensions in October. Received the receipt on Oct 12th. But since then, we haven't received any updates.
I was told that for L1 visa, if the application is pending, visa will not go out of status for 240 days. So I can continue working on my expired Visa. Is this applicable for L2 visa and L2 EAD as well? Based on the USCIS process times, L2 visa is current for March 15th 2020 applications, which is way behind. We are worried about my wife's job because of this. Is there something we can do now?

[Gina1808]

No, the auto-extension does not apply to L2 nor L2 EAD. Your wife can legally stay in the country while I-539 is pending, but that's it.

There is not much you can do while the cases are within "normal" processing times. One option is reaching out to your Congressman's office and asking for help, but they would most likely need a good reason, e.g. serious financial hardship with proof, to help expedite the case.

I feel your frustration. My I-539 / I-765 were received on 10/18/20 (Texas) and I haven't had biometics taken yet. My husband's L1 extension was approved within 2 weeks under premium processing.

So I wish you best of luck and a lot of patience.

[Anand A]

No, L2 EAD does not fall in the category of auto extension.

WRT stay after L2 expiry, yes, you can continue to stay.
A few things are outdated (processing L1 and L2 extension together for example) but other things still hold good.

Is there something we can do now

I believe you can try your luck at filing an Expedite Request
They say they will process on a case by case basis, so its never bad to try IMO.


Gina1808 , yes they discontinued processing the extensions together even with premium since they introduced biometrics requirements ~2 years ago:
Although USCIS website still shows they try to do courtesy faster processing of L2 extension when filed together with L1 extension.

[Debarsish]

Hi,

I have a question for L2 EAD and then conversion to L1B. If say, I worked for 2 years with L2 EAD and then I converted to L1B visa. Do I get 5 years of L1 visa or it will be 5-2 = 3years of L1B?
Thanks in advance for your response.

Regards,
Debarsish

[snehaamarapuram]

My i 539 and i 765 extensions both are pending. I filed in July 2020 and I lost my job because of it. If my i-539 (L2 extension)gets approved can I travel to India, get the stamping and come back without the need of filing a new EAD extension. My already filed i 765 extension would still be valid right. Please clarify.

[Libra_14]

My i 539 and i 765 extensions both are pending. I filed in July 2020 and I lost my job because of it. If my i-539 (L2 extension)gets approved can I travel to India, get the stamping and come back without the need of filing a new EAD extension. My already filed i 765 extension would still be valid right. Please clarify.

Certainly.

[ctsharish_dolo]

Just sharing my experience. Today I received my L2 EAD renewal receipt(Category A18). I am so surprised to see the 180 days automatic extension on the renewal receipt. That's highly unlikely to happen. It's a notice of action(receipt 797C). Can anyone suggest what should I do? Should I go ahead and use it for my I9? The receipt says it's extended for 180 days automatically if the class matches the previous one. In my case it does(which is A18).

[Gina1808]

Just sharing my experience. Today I received my L2 EAD renewal receipt(Category A18). I am so surprised to see the 180 days automatic extension on the renewal receipt. That's highly unlikely to happen. It's a notice of action(receipt 797C). Can anyone suggest what should I do? Should I go ahead and use it for my I9? The receipt says it's extended for 180 days automatically if the class matches the previous one. In my case it does(which is A18).

No, A18 category does *not* qualify for auto-extension. You can see a full list of qualifying categories here: https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the...-ead-extension

I-797C uses a standard draft so you have to check for the category eligibility yourself. It also does not matter that your extension is for the same class. You cannot use it for I-9. When your current EAD expires, you will have no US work authorization.

I'm in the same boat. I filed L2 EAD extension mid-October together with I-539. My employer placed me on unpaid leave until the extension comes in. If you have filed for EAD without I-539, you have a better chance to get it approved faster, in ~5 months. Hope this helps.

[L7004]

About L2 visa and L2 EAD pending

Hello Everyone,

I am looking for some guidance. I want to file for my L2 extension and EAD together but not sure about couple of things.

- Do we need to prepare two separate packages (with two separate envelopes) or one consolidated package in one envelope. Asking this as some documents overlap and are required for both applications.
- If two separate packages, is there any one single address for sending both the packages. Or the packages have to be sent to two different locations.

Filing both extensions for the first time, earlier both or atleast L2 visa was filed by spouse's company. Could not find this information anywhere on official website or any other forum.

TIA

[Gina1808]

About L2 visa and L2 EAD pending

Hello Everyone,

I am looking for some guidance. I want to file for my L2 extension and EAD together but not sure about couple of things.

- Do we need to prepare two separate packages (with two separate envelopes) or one consolidated package in one envelope. Asking this as some documents overlap and are required for both applications.
- If two separate packages, is there any one single address for sending both the packages. Or the packages have to be sent to two different locations.

Filing both extensions for the first time, earlier both or atleast L2 visa was filed by spouse's company. Could not find this information anywhere on official website or any other forum.

TIA

The best thing you could do is get all 3 filed together: I-129 for L1, I-539 for L2 and I-765 for EAD. That's what my hubby's employer's attorney did for us. Especially now with L2 biometrics requirement getting cancelled mid-May, you could expect significantly faster processing times.
If that is not an option, then file I-539 and I-765 together.

[L7004]

Thank you Gina 1808.
My spouse's employer has stopped filing L2 & L2 EAD along with L1 and now we are supposed do that on our own. Also we are not getting support or clarifications from them as they are not given authority to do so.
I have got to know that to file L2 and L2 EAD together, I need to have separate set of documents (so 2 copies of common documents like i94) for each L2 form and EAD form. These documents need to send in same envelope/mail.
Still I have open question on Address. At what address of USCIS do I need to these? On USCIS website there is guidance for H4 but no details of L2.

Any information or reference on at what address document need to be send when filing L2 & L2 EAD together will be very helpful.

[Libra_14]

My spouse's employer has stopped filing L2 & L2 EAD along with L1 and now we are supposed do that on our own. Also we are not getting support or clarifications from them as they are not given authority to do so.

Many organization do not support L2 & L2-EAD, but they can certainly bundle & send them together, you can fill-in the required forms & send it to attorney to file it together. Check with them once.

Still I have open question on Address. At what address of USCIS do I need to these? On USCIS website there is guidance for H4 but no details of L2.

Its the same for H4 & L2.

[Richa269]

Hi Guys , I have filed my EAD renewal in Jan 2021 and i have approved i539 till next June 2022. My EAD is going to expire in next 3 weeks now . Are they processing little fast in case we have i539 & only require EAD ( i765 ) renewal ?

[Libra_14]

Hi Guys , I have filed my EAD renewal in Jan 2021 and i have approved i539 till next June 2022. My EAD is going to expire in next 3 weeks now . Are they processing little fast in case we have i539 & only require EAD ( i765 ) renewal ?

Hopefully you should see a faster response now onwards.