Category A19 on an employment authorization card identifies the holder as a U-1 nonimmigrant: the principal applicant on an approved U visa petition, granted status as a victim of a qualifying crime who helped law enforcement. The card gives you open-market work authorization for four years, and it is issued automatically when USCIS approves your Form I-918. The code matters because it controls how you renew, whether you get any grace period when the card expires, and how the card fits into your eventual green card application.
Who the A19 Code Identifies
A19 applies only to principal U-1 nonimmigrants. To hold U-1 status, you were the victim of certain serious crimes in the United States, suffered physical or mental harm as a result, and cooperated with the investigation or prosecution. A law enforcement official had to certify that cooperation on Form I-918, Supplement B, before USCIS could approve the petition.1U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Victims of Criminal Activity: U Nonimmigrant Status
The list of qualifying offenses is long. It includes domestic violence, sexual assault, rape, kidnapping, trafficking, stalking, felonious assault, torture, extortion, blackmail, involuntary servitude, false imprisonment, manslaughter, murder, witness tampering, obstruction of justice, and perjury, along with attempts, conspiracy, and solicitation to commit any of them.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. U Visa Law Enforcement Resource Guide
Two nearby codes cause confusion. A16 is not the same thing: it covers T-1 trafficking victims, a separate visa with its own process.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Employment Authorization A20 is the code your qualifying family members receive on their own EADs as derivatives (spouse U-2, children U-3, parents U-4 if you are under 21, and unmarried siblings under 18 U-5). If someone in your household has a work permit with a different code, that is usually why.
How You Received the Card
Unlike most work permits, you did not have to file a separate Form I-765 to get your first A19 card. When USCIS approved your I-918 petition, it issued the EAD automatically, at no additional fee.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status The card itself is a Form I-766: a plastic card with your photo, name, date of birth, the code “(a)(19),” and an expiration date that matches your four-year U-1 status.
Congress caps U visas at 10,000 per fiscal year, and demand exceeds that. If your petition is approvable but no number is available, USCIS puts you on a waitlist with deferred action, and it also runs a bona fide determination process that can grant work authorization before final approval. Work permits issued during those earlier stages generally carry a different category code. You receive the A19 designation only after your U-1 status is formally granted.5U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 3, Part C, Chapter 5 – Bona Fide Determination Process
What the A19 Card Lets You Do
An A19 EAD is open-market work authorization. You can work for any employer, in any position, anywhere in the United States. For Form I-9 purposes, the card is a “List A” document, so it proves both identity and work authorization on its own.6U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-9 Acceptable Documents
Getting a Social Security Number
If you filed Form I-765 (for a renewal or replacement), you could check a box on the form to request an SSN at the same time; the card usually arrives by mail within about two weeks of the EAD. If your initial A19 was issued automatically with the I-918 approval and you still need an SSN, you can apply directly at a Social Security office and use the EAD as proof of work authorization.7Social Security Administration. Apply for Your Social Security Card While Applying for Your Work Permit and/or Lawful Permanent Residency
Discrimination Protections
Federal law prohibits employers from treating you differently in hiring, firing, or recruitment because of your citizenship status or national origin. The Department of Justice’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section enforces those protections under 8 U.S.C. ยง 1324b. An employer who refuses to hire you because your work permit is based on a U visa, or who demands specific documents beyond what the I-9 process requires, may be violating federal law.8United States Department of Justice. Immigrant and Employee Rights Section
Renewing an A19 Work Permit
When your four-year card nears expiration, you have to file Form I-765 to renew it. That is different from your initial issuance: this time the form is required. You should also have a pending or approved Form I-539 to extend your underlying U-1 status, because the EAD depends on the status.9USCIS. Form I-765, Instructions for Application for Employment Authorization
USCIS lets you file up to 180 days before your current card expires. File as early in that window as you can.10U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-765, Application for Employment Authorization
Fees and Waiver
The Form I-765 filing fee is $520 by paper or $470 online under the current USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055, edition March 2026). No separate biometric services fee applies specifically to A19 filers under the general fee structure.11U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055 Fee Schedule
If you cannot afford the fee, file Form I-912 to request a waiver. USCIS grants waivers if you receive a means-tested public benefit such as Medicaid, SNAP, or SSI; if your household income is at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines; or if you can show financial hardship such as a medical emergency, unemployment, or homelessness.12USCIS. Form I-912, Instructions for Request for Fee Waiver
No Automatic Extension
This is the part that catches A19 holders. Category A19 is not on the USCIS list of categories eligible for an automatic extension while a renewal is pending.13U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Automatic Extensions Based on a Timely Filed Application to Renew Employment Authorization If your card expires before USCIS decides your renewal, you cannot legally work during the gap, even if you filed on time. Processing times move, and multi-month delays are common. Filing at the earliest point in the 180-day window is your best protection.
What to Gather Before Filing
- A copy of the front and back of your current EAD.
- Two identical, recent, color passport-style photographs.
- A copy of your I-918 approval notice or other proof of current U-1 status.
- Proof that you have filed Form I-539 to extend your U-1 status, if applicable.
You can file online through your USCIS account or by mail on paper.9USCIS. Form I-765, Instructions for Application for Employment Authorization
Replacing a Lost, Stolen, or Damaged Card
If your A19 card is lost, stolen, or damaged, file a new Form I-765, select “replacement” as the reason, and pay the standard fee ($520 paper, $470 online). The Form I-912 fee waiver is available if you qualify. Replacement processing can take several months, so file promptly. Current estimates are on the USCIS case processing times page.11U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055 Fee Schedule
Travel Is a Separate Question
The A19 card authorizes employment. It does not authorize you to leave the country and return. To travel abroad, you generally need advance parole through Form I-131. Leaving without it can put your U nonimmigrant status and your ability to re-enter at risk.
Long trips also affect your eligibility for a green card later. Any single absence over 90 days, or absences totaling more than 180 days, may require a certification from the law enforcement agency that supported your U petition confirming that the absence was necessary for the investigation or prosecution.14eCFR. 8 CFR Part 245 – Adjustment of Status to That of Person Admitted for Permanent Residence
From A19 to a Green Card
U-1 nonimmigrants can apply for lawful permanent residence on Form I-485 once they meet a set of requirements:
- At least three continuous years of physical presence in the United States since being admitted in U-1 status. The clock starts on the date USCIS granted your U visa.
- You still hold U nonimmigrant status when you file.
- You have not unreasonably refused to help law enforcement with the investigation or prosecution of the qualifying crime.
- USCIS finds your continued presence in the United States is warranted on humanitarian grounds, to ensure family unity, or because it serves the public interest.
Most grounds of inadmissibility that would normally block a green card are either waived or do not apply to U visa adjustment applicants. The exception is the ground related to participation in Nazi persecution, genocide, or torture, which cannot be waived.15U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Green Card for a Victim of a Crime (U Nonimmigrant) Derivative family members in U-2 through U-5 status can also adjust once they meet the same three-year continuous presence requirement and still hold their derivative status when they file.14eCFR. 8 CFR Part 245 – Adjustment of Status to That of Person Admitted for Permanent Residence