I am a US citizen, my wife is french working with an EAD via OPT(F1) - she is going to be filing the I-485 in early November

[morgonzobean 0]

I am a US citizen, my wife is french working with an EAD via OPT(F1) - she is going to be filing the I-485 in early November, 2012. Her EAD is set to expire January 11, 2013 - will she be able to work with the I-485 pending? thanks so much!

[EM_Vandaveer 2,369]

You do know that you have to file an I-130 as well, right? With the I-130 & I-485 concurrent filing, you can file for a new EAD for no extra fee. It takes about 3 months to receive the new EAD card.

I am not a 100% sure if she is allowed to work in between the expiration date of the old EAD and receiving the new one, but I would venture to say that she is NOT allowed.

Somebody else I am sure will chime in and correct me if I am wrong. Good luck!

I highly recommend this guide:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide2

[morgonzobean 0]

Yes - we are aware of all the forms filed concurrently with the I-485 - I am just trying to be concise and focus on this specific detail...

[Boiler 43,433]

Once she has the new EAD, if you delay there might be a gap.

[morgonzobean 0]

Thanks! I figured this much, but wanted to make sure - I thought I had read somewhere that you could keep your EAD/OPT-aquired job if your I-485 and all other relevant docs were in "pending" status.

[Boiler 43,433]

She can with her new EAD, she will always need a valid EAD.

[Em31 0]

I am 99.99% sure that once you are filed, your wife will not be able to work until she receives her new EAD card.

I was also working with my EAD (F1/OPT) which expired at the end of this August. Someone (an attorney!) told me the same: that I would be able to keep my OPT acquired job while my status shows pending. So I left work the day before my F1/OPT EAD expired, sent our AOS package, and came back to work with my NOAs.

However, when I brought in the NOAs (proof of my pending status) to my employer, the employer's attorney and HR said that they can not have me working since they need the number on my EAD card for W2 and other tax papers.

I was devastated, not only because I couldn't imagine not working for so long, but also because I was totally misled by an immigration lawyer(!!)that "it's OK to work on pending stats". Obviously, it is NOT OK!

Anyways, I would say that if you could, wait until the EAD is about to expire, and then file. Talking to the employer should not be a bad idea, too. I wouldn't have thought that my company would be willing to wait for my return.