Visa stamping expired: H-1Bs in Texas facing denial of driver's license renewal owing to "new rule"

Immigration attorneys said they are getting a lot of complaints from Texas that H-1B visa holders are being refused by the Texas government when they are going for a renewal of their driver’s license as officials said their visa stamping has expired. Attorney Emily Neumann said there is no rule in Texas that warrants such a move and if the situation continues, there will be litigation. Because a visa stamping is a travel document and not a status document. They have their valid visa, passport, and driver’s license, yet they are being turned away.“A lawfully present worker walks into a Texas DPS office to renew a driver license and walks out denied. The reason given is that the U.S. visa stamp in their passport has expired,” Neumann said explaining the newest issue.“Here is the problem with that reason. A visa stamp is not a status document. It is a travel document, used once to apply for admission at a port of entry. After someone is admitted, it is the Form I-94, not the visa foil, that controls how long they may stay. A person whose stamp lapsed years ago can be in entirely valid status today, on an approved extension or change of status, and that expired stamp says nothing about either their identity or their right to be here,” she explained.Neumann said Texas rules say that both valid or expired visa stamp is accepted for a driver’s license renewal.“It accepts a foreign passport with a valid or expired visa issued by the United States Department of State, together with a valid Form I-94, as a primary identity document. The Department’s own Form DL-17 says the same thing. The visa may be expired. The rule states it in plain text,” Neumann said.“I have asked DPS to confirm its rule in writing and to direct its offices to apply Section 15.24 as written, so that lawfully present professionals are not denied a license over a document that has nothing to do with who they are or whether they belong here. These are people who work, support families, and contribute to Texas every day, and they should not have to fight for a basic credential the state’s own rule already says they qualify for,” Neumann added.