What You Need to Know

• Refugees and asylees are work authorized automatically, from day one. This comes from federal regulation, 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(3) for refugees and 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(5) for asylees, and it does not require an EAD card, an application, or USCIS approval.

• Most parolees, including Afghan allies who arrived through Operation Allies Welcome or Enduring Welcome, are not automatically authorized. They generally must file Form I-765 and receive an approved EAD before they can legally start working. This category, (c)(11), is also the one currently targeted by a proposed DHS rule that would make this authorization harder to get and easier to lose.

• Green card holders, including most Afghan SIV recipients, are authorized through their permanent resident status. The green card itself is the proof. No separate EAD is required or exists for this category.

• An expired or missing EAD card means different things for different people. For a refugee or asylee, it means nothing about their underlying right to work. For a parolee, it can mean their authorization has genuinely lapsed and needs to be renewed before they can legally work again.

• This applies the same way in every state. Immigration status and work authorization are governed exclusively by federal law. No state, employer, or agency can impose its own documentation rules on top of what federal law already requires.

• Refusing valid documentation can be unlawful. Rejecting a valid Form I-94, green card, or other accepted proof of work authorization because it is not an EAD card can violate federal anti-discrimination protections under INA 274B.

What Work Authorization Means, by Category

Federal regulation at 8 CFR 274a.12 sorts every category of noncitizen work authorization into three buckets, and knowing which bucket someone falls into answers almost every question that follows.

Authorized incident to status, no application needed — 8 CFR 274a.12(a). The immigration status itself carries the work authorization. Refugees, asylees, and lawful permanent residents fall here. A person in this group can start working the day they receive their status. An EAD, if they choose to get one, is optional proof, never a prerequisite.

Authorized incident to status, but only for a specific employer — 8 CFR 274a.12(b). This applies to a narrower set of categories, mostly certain foreign government and international organization employees. It is uncommon among Afghan allies and included here for completeness.

Must apply, and USCIS decides — 8 CFR 274a.12(c). This covers most humanitarian parolees, deferred action recipients, pending asylum applicants during their first 150 days, and pending adjustment of status applicants. People in this group are not authorized to work until they file Form I-765 and USCIS approves it. This is the category most exposed to processing delays, and the one currently facing a proposed rule that would tighten eligibility further.

The Legal Basis for Refugees and Asylees

Work authorization for refugees and asylees comes bundled with the status itself. The status is the authorization.

• 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(3) authorizes refugees admitted under INA 207 to work for the period of time they hold that status.

• 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(5) authorizes asylees granted status under INA 208 to work for the period of time they hold that status, with an EAD expiration date reflecting only a need to renew the document, not a lapse in authorization.

• A 2002 USCIS memorandum from William Yates confirms that although the regulation implies refugees and asylees must also apply for an EAD, they are authorized to work incident to status regardless of whether they have one.

• USCIS Handbook for Employers (M-274), Section 7.3 states plainly that asylees are employment eligible incident to their status and are authorized to work indefinitely because their status does not expire.

In practice, this means asylees can complete Form I-9 using Form I-94 showing an asylum grant, and refugees can use Form I-94 as a valid List C document for their first 90 days after admission. Neither group needs to file anything or wait for approval before starting work. An EAD application, when filed, is for documentation convenience only.

SIV Holders and Green Card Work Authorization

Most Afghan Special Immigrant Visa holders enter the United States as lawful permanent residents, meaning they hold a green card from the start. Permanent resident status is its own category under 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(1), and it carries work authorization the same way refugee and asylee status does. The green card is the proof, functioning as a List A document for Form I-9 purposes, and there is no separate EAD process layered on top of it for this population. If an SIV holder with a valid green card is being asked to produce an EAD, that request is based on a misunderstanding of the document itself.

Parolees: Why This Category Is Different

Afghans who arrived through Operation Allies Welcome or Enduring Welcome generally hold humanitarian parole, category (c)(11). Unlike refugees and asylees, parole does not carry automatic work authorization. A parolee must file Form I-765 and receive an approved EAD before they can legally work. This is a real requirement, not a documentation formality, and it is the reason EAD processing delays hit this population especially hard. A parolee whose EAD has expired and whose renewal is still pending may not actually be authorized to work during that gap, a materially different situation from a refugee or asylee in the same position.

This category is also the direct target of a DHS proposed rule published June 5, 2026, which would add an arrest-based disqualification, require E-Verify-participating employers for renewals, and allow automatic termination of work authorization if the underlying parole grant is delayed or denied. Public comment closes on or about August 4, 2026. Full details are in our companion explainer on the EAD Rule Change.

TPS, Deferred Action, and Pending Applications

• Temporary Protected Status for Afghanistan ended on July 14, 2025, so this category no longer applies to new or renewing Afghan TPS holders, though it may still be relevant for allies who held other countries' TPS designations.

• Deferred action recipients, category (c)(14), must apply for and receive an approved EAD, similar to parolees, and are also directly affected by the same proposed DHS rule described above.

• Pending asylum applicants whose case has not yet been decided can apply for an EAD, category (c)(8), but only after their application has been pending 150 days, and that authorization is not automatic until USCIS approves the I-765.

• Pending adjustment of status applicants, category (c)(9), including refugees and asylees who have since filed to become permanent residents, can apply for an EAD for convenience, but their underlying work authorization from refugee or asylee status continues uninterrupted in the meantime.

Why This Matters for Afghan Allies

This section is AfghanEvac's assessment of the specific risk to our community.

Many Afghan families are mixed status, with one spouse holding asylee status and another still waiting on a parole-based EAD, or a parent with a green card and an adult child with a pending asylum claim. Employers, DMV staff, and licensing boards frequently apply a single blanket rule, no current EAD, no job or license, without recognizing that the correct answer depends entirely on which category the person in front of them holds. That instinct is understandable given how confusing this system is, and it still produces wrongful denials for the exact population, refugees and asylees, who are supposed to face no barrier at all.

We also want to be direct about the other side of this. Parolees genuinely can lose work authorization if their EAD lapses and a renewal has not yet been approved, and telling someone in that position that they face no risk would be its own kind of harm. Knowing which category applies protects people in both directions, by stopping wrongful denials for refugees and asylees, and by helping parolees understand a deadline that is real.

What Employers and Agencies Get Wrong, and Why It Does Not Hold

Most denials are not malicious. They come from applying one rule to a population that actually spans several different legal categories.

• "We need to see a current EAD to complete the I-9." Form I-9 accepts Form I-94 with the appropriate notation as a List C document for refugees and asylees, and a green card as a List A document for permanent residents. A current EAD is one acceptable option among several, not the only one.

• "The card is expired, so we can't verify status." For a refugee or asylee, an expired EAD reflects only that the document needs renewing, not that status or authorization has lapsed. For a parolee, the answer can be different, and is worth confirming rather than assuming in either direction.

• "State law requires a valid work permit." Immigration status and work authorization are federal matters. No state can impose a documentation standard stricter than federal law already sets.

• "We could face liability for hiring someone without valid papers." The liability risk runs the other way for refugees and asylees specifically. Refusing to accept valid I-9 documentation because it is not the document an employer expected can itself expose that employer to a discrimination claim under INA 274B.

If You Hit a Wall

• If you are a refugee or asylee and are told you cannot work, be hired, or be licensed because your EAD is expired or missing, treat it as a documentation error, not a problem with your status. Ask for the specific rule being cited, point to 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(3) or (a)(5) and USCIS Handbook M-274, Section 7.3, and offer your Form I-94 as an alternative.

• Document the interaction in writing, including the date, the name of the person you spoke with, and what they told you, and escalate to a supervisor or HR compliance officer if the denial continues.

• If you are a parolee and your EAD has expired with a renewal still pending, confirm your actual status before assuming the denial is wrongful. Check your case status, confirm whether an automatic extension applies to your filing, and talk to an immigration attorney promptly, since the underlying risk in this category is real and time-sensitive.

• In every case, consider contacting a legal aid organization if a denial persists after you have provided documentation and the relevant citations.

Key Takeaways

• Refugees and asylees are authorized to work automatically, the day they receive their status, and never need to wait for an EAD card.

• This comes from 8 CFR 274a.12(a)(3) and (a)(5), federal regulation that has not changed and is not currently subject to any pending rule.

• Most parolees, including Afghan allies who arrived through Operation Allies Welcome or Enduring Welcome, must apply for and receive an approved EAD before they can legally work, and that category faces a proposed DHS rule that would make it harder to get and easier to lose.

• SIV holders with permanent resident status are authorized to work through their green card, with no separate EAD required.

• Because immigration law is federal, none of these rules vary by state.

• Refusing to accept valid documentation from a refugee, asylee, or green card holder in place of an EAD card can violate federal anti-discrimination law under INA 274B.

• If you are unsure which category applies to you, or if you are denied work, a license, or a benefit over this, get legal help promptly rather than guessing.

Sources and further reading: 8 CFR 274a.12(a), (b), and (c), Classes of Aliens Authorized to Accept Employment; USCIS Handbook for Employers (M-274), Section 7.3, Refugees and Asylees; USCIS memorandum from William Yates (2002) on employment authorization for refugees and asylees; USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 10, Parts A and B; INA § 274B, unfair immigration-related employment practices; AfghanEvac's companion explainer on the proposed DHS work authorization rule at afghanevac.org/ead-rule-change.