Shruti Kapoor
More than a lakh immigrant women on H-4 visas in the US finally have a reason to smile. Recently, the Biden Administration announced that it would not revoke the H-4 Employment Authorisation Document (EAD) programme. The H-4 visa is normally issued to those who have already started the process of seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident status.
Neha Mahajan, the co-founder of Skilled Immigrants In America (SIIA), is a vocal advocate for H-4 EAD but she argues that it is a quick fix by the Government and the real problem is the backlog of Green Cards. The US has set an arbitrary cap of seven per cent in the employment-based immigration category. This means that the wait time for countries like India is 200 years. More than 1.2 million applicants, who are highly skilled immigrants, are stuck in the Green Card backlog. Without the EAD, thousands of married Indian women in the US (93 per cent of approved applications for H-4 EAD are issued to women born in India) would be barred from working. These highly skilled individuals with good educations, jobs, and steady incomes back home in India find themselves jobless and dependent on their husbands. The inability to work affects their confidence, self-worth and, ultimately their mental health. Many find themselves unable to get out of domestically abusive relationships because of the lack of financial independence.
Neha Gill, executive director, Apna Ghar, a Chicago-based organisation focusing on gender violence (24 hours crisis line: +1-773-334-4663), says that having work authorisation is key for women as having employment helps with other things like getting a social security number, a driver’s licence or opening a bank account. It may even be a way out of their abusive marriages. Shilpy Chatterjee, a senior anti-violence programme advocate at Sakhi for South Asian Women, (Helpline: +1 (212) 868-6741) has seen the kind of support system available to survivors who work. “They have a world which he is not a part of,” she says. Having colleagues, financial independence and access to outside help and resources allows a victim of domestic abuse to seek help.
For many immigrant families, having a H-4 EAD has reduced personal and financial burdens. Sheetal Koparde, an experienced human resources professional, currently resides in Boston with her husband and a daughter with special needs. Having an EAD was a huge help for her, especially given her daughter’s health condition. Once Sheetal started working, the household went from a single income family to a double income one. Access to better health benefits from her employer allowed her to not only cover medical costs like her daughter’s speech therapy sessions but also her home treatments and dietary needs.
Unfortunately, last year Sheetal’s employment came to a halt due to delay in H-4 EAD renewal. The renewal process for many in 2020 was slow, costing them their jobs. According to Sakhi, two out of five South Asian immigrant women in the US are survivors of domestic violence (DV).
Abha Rai’s research at Loyola University, Chicago, shows that immigration status can be a risk factor. “Due to increased dependency on the spouse there is a power differential between the husband and wife. Furthermore, in the absence of social networks in the US, a woman is confined to the home and can be a silent victim of domestic violence.”
Often, victims choose not to file a police report against their spouse. The reasons range from conditioning, to social stigma to fear of losing their own immigration status. However, under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), 1994, certain abused non-immigrant spouses (including those on H-4) may use Form I-765V to request an EAD. Unfortunately, this form is not commonly known or popular within the H-4 community. Jeffrey Chase, former immigration judge and the founder of the Round Table of Former Immigration Judges, says, “The provision was passed in order to be used. Domestic violence also remains a basis for granting asylum. The recognition of this ground in 2014 was the result of 20 years of legal effort. Today there are a lot of groups working on domestic violence-based asylum claims in response to the Trump Administration’s many efforts to block such grants.” Chase says that in January 2020, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision that a woman’s resistance to being raped was an expression of a political opinion deserving of asylum protection.
While each person’s situation is unique, Shobhana Johri Verma, from SAAPRI (773) 373-9750), suggests doing your homework and knowing your rights if you plan to move to a foreign country, especially by way of marriage. In cases where women on a H4 are facing DV and do not have EAD, all hope is not lost. They can call 911 for help and reach out to the Indian Embassy, too. Identifying a trusted support system, especially if they are new to a country, helps.
Often survivors leave their homes with no cash, without their documents (taken away by the abuser) and even children. So, knowing that a safety net policy like VAWA exists offers security and independence, which is crucial for survivors.
Talking about DV is not encouraged within the South Asian community. But the only way we can put an end to this is by reporting it and talking about it.
