How to keep an employee legally authorized when their work permit expires

An employee's employment authorization document (EAD) has an expiration date, and that date controls whether they can keep working. Start the recheck 180 days before expiration, the earliest date a renewal can be filed. The 180-day date starts the filing; it does not extend the card. Update the I-9 only when a new document or approval notice arrives.

The recheck starts before the card expires

Put the expiration date in the same calendar where payroll, taxes, and benefits deadlines live. Keep the card date visible in the file. A work permit expiration changes what you may lawfully do with that employee's hours, so it deserves the same attention as a compliance date. A missed date can become an unauthorized worker problem, not just a paperwork miss.

Set a second reminder closer to the expiration date. The first reminder starts the filing. The second one checks whether the employee has filed, whether the category still allows an extension, and whether the file has the receipt. If anything is missing, talk to the employee before the date passes.

Check the EAD category before you assume anything. The category decides whether an extension can apply. Note the category with the expiration date in the file. The final rule was set to become effective when published in the Federal Register, the official U.S. government publication, with publication scheduled for October 14, 2026. Most EAD renewals filed on or after October 30, 2025 no longer keep a worker authorized after the old card expires while USCIS, the federal immigration agency, decides the renewal.

An EAD renewal submitted before October 30, 2025 may retain the old continuation if the filing was timely and the applicant had the required receipt notice before the card expired. That older path is narrow. Do not build a schedule around it unless the employee's file shows the exact conditions.

The old extension is gone for most renewals

Backlog makes the timing problem worse. As of June 30, 2026, USCIS had more than 432,000 EAD renewal applications pending for at least six months, including more than 91,000 pending for more than 18 months. A pending case does not replace the card. If the card expires, the default answer is that the employee may not keep working.

A receipt notice is useful evidence that a filing was made, but it is not a substitute for the card when the card has expired. Do not let a pending receipt notice become a habit. If the employee cannot show a valid extension, the business should stop assigning work. That pause is cheaper than a later correction.

If the employee is an H-4 spouse, do not assume a court order helps. A federal court order issued September 10-11, 2026, gave relief to seven H-4 spouses. The order was limited to the seven named plaintiffs and did not restore the former EAD continuation for other H-4 spouses or EAD holders nationwide. For other EAD holders, the same rule applies: the card date controls.

The I-9 update belongs with the new document

I-9 reverification is a recordkeeping task: check whether the document in front of you still supports employment. The employer's job is to track the date and the document. The checklist below is the one you keep. Each item is small enough to do in a minute, and together they protect the employee and the business.

• Put the EAD expiration date in the payroll calendar.
• Set a reminder at the start of the renewal window.
• Check the EAD category for any allowed extension.
• Ask the employee to file the renewal as soon as the window opens.
• Stop work if the card expires without a new document or valid extension.
• Complete I-9 Section 3 when the new card or approval notice arrives.