Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Spouse Work Authorization Bills

Bills concerning work authorization for spouses of Treaty Trader/Investors and Intra-Company Transferees were approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday, December 13, 2001. These bills, H.R. 2277 and H.R. 2278, would allow spouses of Treaty Trader/Investors and Intra-Company Transferees respectively to obtain work authorization in the United States. In addition, H.R. 2278 cuts down the amount of time an alien would have to work abroad for a qualifying related company before transferring to the United States where the individual is applying under a blanket L petition and meets the requirements for expedited processing.

Both this bills need to be approved by the full Senate before going to the President for signature. Finally, if these bills are signed into law, the INS would need to implement them through regulations or policy directives in order for individuals to take advantage of them.

Greenberg Traurig will continue to provide updates on this and other issues as more information becomes available.