Eaton Peabody

Work authorization available to spouses of L and E visa holders

H.R. 2277 and H.R. 2278 were recently signed into law by President Bush. H.R. 2277 allows spouses of E visa holders (Treaty Traders and Treaty Investors) to work in the United States. Formerly, spouses could accompany the E visa holder but were prohibited from engaging in employment on a derivative basis.

H.R. 2278 has two main features. First, it makes work authorization available to the spouses of L visa holders (Intra-Company Transferees). Second, it reduces from 12 to 6 months the amount of time that an employee who works for an employer with a blanket petition must be employed by the foreign entity to be eligible for an L visa.

This comes as welcome news to our Canadian neighbors who often use L and E visas to temporarily move to Maine to oversee investment or start U.S. operations.

Rev'd 3.5.'02

Please contact Matthew S. Raynes, mraynes@eatonpeabody.com, for further information.

This paper is provided as general information, and is not a substitute for legal or other professional advice.