Thousands oppose a proposed work permit rule

ASAP members are leading the fight against the government’s new proposed work permit rule — a rule that would make it nearly impossible for asylum seekers to apply for an initial work permit and make renewals more difficult. You can read more about the proposed rule on this ASAP page.  

Thanks to ASAP members’ advocacy, thousands of people and organizations submitted comments opposing the proposed changes. The comment period closed on April 24, 2026. Here is what happened:

ASAP submitted a comment featuring statements from 512 members

ASAP submitted a comment opposing the proposed rule. The comment reflected the ideas and concerns of thousands of ASAP members who have spoken about work permits over many years. In the comment, ASAP strongly opposed the proposed rule and urged the government to withdraw its proposal.

ASAP’s comment specifically featured 512 anonymous statements from ASAP members. Thank you to the ASAP members who took the time to share your thoughts about the proposed rule! 

Thanks to ASAP members’ advocacy, thousands of other people and groups opposed the rule 

ASAP staff shared members' concerns with hundreds of key partners — including businesses, city and state governments, and labor unions — and many of those partners submitted their own comments uplifting what ASAP members shared. 

In total, over 7,100 individuals, businesses, local governments, labor unions, places of worship, and nonprofit organizations submitted comments in response to the proposed rule. 

Below is a snapshot of some of those groups:

Former government officials: 21 former government officials, including former Director of USCIS, Ur Jaddou.

Labor unions: The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA), National Education Association (NEA), and United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).

Business groups: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Majority, Critical Labor Coalition, state and local groups including the San Diego Regional Chamber and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, businesses including SHRM and Waste Pro USA, and tech sector groups including the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) representing companies such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Visa. There was also a business sign-on comment joined by employers and business groups including Dr. Bronner's and the Coalition of Franchisee Associations.

Faith groups: The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Sikh Coalition, the Mormon Women for Ethical Government, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and many individual congregations and local groups, including Jewish Family Service of Western Massachusetts, Buena Vista United Methodist Church Immigration Committee, and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Youngstown, Ohio Social Action Committee.

State and local governments: 19 State Attorney Generals and the City of Washington, DC; Cities for Action, a coalition of nearly 200 mayors and county executives; and Cities and Counties for Citizenship, a national network of nearly 120 cities and counties.

Immigrants’ rights organizations: African Communities Together (ACT), American Immigration Council (AIC), American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), CASA, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), FWD.us, Human Rights First, National Immigration Forum, UnDocuBlack Network, and UnidosUS, amongst many others.

Organizations supporting survivors of gender-based violence: 52 organizations that work to assist, uplift, and advocate on behalf of survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and other forms of gender‑based violence, led by the Tahirih Justice Center.

Kids organizations: 24 organizations focused on the welfare of children and families led by Children Thrive Action Network (CTAN) and the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), including First Focus on Children, Coalition on Human Needs, and Children’s HealthWatch.

Members of Congress: 30 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, led by Rep. Salinas (D-Oregon-06), and 12 U.S. Senators, led by Senator King (I-Maine).

You can read all of the comments submitted in response to the proposed rule here.

When will the government issue a final version of the rule? 

We do not know. The government may decide to issue a final rule in the coming months. The government could also decide not to issue a final version of the rule at all.

Before the government can finalize a rule, the government is required to review and respond to the comments. Thanks to ASAP members’ advocacy, DHS must now review thousands of comments. We do not know how long it will take DHS to review these comments. 

If DHS tries to finalize the rule without adequately responding to every significant concern that they receive, a group or individual could file a lawsuit in federal court. If the lawsuit is successful, a court could prevent the final rule from going into effect. 

ASAP will continue to closely monitor this rule and keep ASAP members updated. 

In the meantime, there is still time to apply for an initial work permit before the proposed rule becomes final. You can apply for an initial work permit 150 days after you apply for asylum.