Laid Off on H-1B: The 60-Day Grace Period and Your 4 Options

Life in the USOct 18, 2026 · 8 min read

A layoff is stressful for anyone. On a work visa it comes with a countdown. The good news is that the rules are clear and the main deadline is a single date you can calculate on day one. This guide walks through how the 60-day grace period works for H-1B workers (and the same rule for E-3, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 and TN), the four realistic paths forward, and the money deadlines that run in parallel. If you want the dates worked out for your own situation, our free Laid Off on a Visa? tool turns your end date and I-94 into a dated checklist.

How the 60-day grace period works

The rule is in 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2). Workers in E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 and TN classifications, and their dependents, are not considered out of status solely because employment ended:

• for up to 60 consecutive days, or until the end of the authorized validity period, whichever is shorter;
• once per authorized validity period (so a second layoff on the same approval may leave you with no grace period);
• without permission to work, unless you are otherwise authorized;
• and DHS can shorten or eliminate it in its discretion.

"Authorized validity period" is the date on your I-94 record, not the visa stamp in your passport. Download your most recent I-94 from the CBP website and check the "admit until" date. If it is earlier than day 60, your grace period ends on that date instead.

Counting from your last day of employment

USCIS says the grace period starts the day after termination of employment, and that the termination date is "typically determined based on the last day for which a salary or wage is paid." That means:

• Get the employment end date in writing (your separation letter), along with your last pay stubs.
• Garden leave or paid notice: if you stopped working before your official end date, USCIS has not said exactly how this is treated. The cautious approach is to plan around the earlier date.
• Leaving the US ends the grace period immediately. You would come back later in a new status.

Example: your separation letter says employment ends on March 31 and your I-94 runs for another two years. Day 1 is April 1, and day 60 is May 30. Anything you file must be received by USCIS by then, and two weeks earlier is a safer target.

Your 4 options

The key point: a nonfrivolous petition or application filed before your status ends keeps you in a period of authorized stay while it is pending, even after day 60, as long as you don't work without authorization. Ask your attorney or new employer to request the grace period in the cover letter. Most people pick one primary path and one backup.

1. A new employer files for you (H-1B portability)

A new employer gets a certified Labor Condition Application (DOL generally certifies one within 7 working days) and files Form I-129 before your grace period ends. Because you are still in H-1B status during the grace period, H-1B portability under 8 CFR 214.2(h)(2)(i)(H) lets you start working as soon as the petition is filed, without waiting for approval. If you were already counted against the cap, there is no new lottery. For E-3, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 or TN, a timely new petition still keeps you here, but you generally have to wait for approval before starting.

2. Change to another status

Form I-539 lets you switch to a non-work status while you regroup:

• B-2 visitor: buys time to job-hunt and interview, but no work. You need to show you plan to leave after the visit and keep a residence abroad. The I-539 fee is $420 online or $470 on paper (USCIS Form G-1055, edition 10/16/26). If a new employer later files an I-129 with premium processing, USCIS generally decides it together with the pending I-539.
• H-4 or L-2: if your spouse holds H-1B or L-1. L-2 spouses are work-authorized incident to status. H-4 spouses can work only with an H-4 EAD, which requires the H-1B spouse to have an approved I-140 or certain AC21 extensions.
• F-1 student: with an I-20 from a SEVP-certified school. Ask the school about start dates, since a long gap before the program starts can be a problem.

3. Compelling-circumstances EAD

This is a discretionary work permit of up to one year (category (c)(35), with (c)(36) for dependents). You need all of the following: an approved employment-based I-140, a priority date that is not current, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, O-1 or L-1 status when you file (the grace period counts), and compelling circumstances. USCIS gives examples such as serious illness or disability, employer retaliation, other substantial harm, or significant disruption to the employer. A felony or two or more misdemeanor convictions bar you. File Form I-765 before the grace period ends ($470 online, $520 on paper as of October 2026).

The trade-off: once you work on this EAD you are no longer maintaining nonimmigrant status, which can make a later change of status inside the US harder. Talk to an attorney first.

4. Leave the US by the last day

Departing on time keeps your record clean for future visas, and you can keep job-hunting from abroad while a new employer files for consular processing. If you are leaving, ask your former employer in writing to pay for your trip home (see below).

What your employer owes you

Health insurance and money deadlines

• COBRA: you have 60 days to elect, counted from the later of the date coverage ends or the date of the election notice. It usually lasts up to 18 months and can cost up to 102% of the plan's cost.
• Marketplace plan: losing job coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment window on HealthCare.gov or your state marketplace, which is often cheaper.
• 401(k): leave it in the plan or roll it over. Cashing out before 59½ generally adds a 10% additional tax.
• Unemployment insurance: each state sets eligibility. California, for example, requires non-citizens to be authorized to work, and during the grace period you generally are not. Answer the work-authorization question truthfully and let the state decide.

If you have a green card case

If your I-140 was approved 180 days or more before the employer withdraws it (or your I-485 had been pending 180 days), it is not automatically revoked and you keep the priority date. If your I-485 has been pending 180 days or more, you can move to a same-or-similar job under INA 204(j) using Form I-485 Supplement J, and work on your I-485-based EAD.

On F-1 OPT instead?

The 60-day grace period does not apply to OPT. Post-completion OPT allows no more than 90 days of unemployment in total, or 150 days in total including a STEM extension. STEM OPT students must report the job loss to their DSO within 10 days.

Proposed: removing the grace period

On September 11, 2026, DHS published a notice of proposed rulemaking, "Eliminating the Discretionary 60-Day Grace Period" (91 FR 57807). It proposes to remove 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2) and return to the earlier policy of not giving these workers an up-to-60-day grace period when employment ends. Comments close November 10, 2026. As of October 18, 2026 this is only a proposal: there is no final rule and no effective date, and the current 60-day rule still applies. If you are laid off now, plan with today's rules but file early.

How the Laid Off on a Visa? tool helps

Enter your status, employment end date and I-94 date in Laid Off on a Visa? and it shows your last day, a suggested file-by date two weeks earlier, your final pay and COBRA dates, and the options that fit your status, each with links to the regulation behind it. Nothing is uploaded; it runs in your browser. While you look for the next job, H-1B Salary Lookup shows what employers have actually filed for similar roles, and once a new petition is in, USCIS Case Tracker follows the receipt number. If you are still on OPT and planning a cap petition, see our guide to the H-1B lottery.

FAQ

Can I work during the 60-day grace period?

No, not unless you are otherwise authorized. The exception is H-1B portability: once a new H-1B employer's nonfrivolous petition is filed while you are still in status, you can start working for that employer.

Does severance extend my grace period?

Not clearly. USCIS says the end of employment is typically determined by the last day for which a salary or wage is paid, but it has not said how lump-sum severance or paid notice without work is treated. The safe approach is to count from the earlier of your last day worked and your last paid day.

What happens if my new employer files on day 59?

A nonfrivolous petition filed before your status ends keeps you in a period of authorized stay while it is pending, even past day 60. For H-1B portability you can start working once it is filed. Filing that close to the deadline leaves no room for a courier delay or a rejected filing, so aim for at least two weeks earlier.

Is DHS getting rid of the 60-day grace period?

DHS has proposed it. A notice of proposed rulemaking published on September 11, 2026 (91 FR 57807) would remove 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2). Comments close November 10, 2026. As of October 18, 2026 it is only a proposal, with no final rule and no effective date, so the current 60-day rule still applies.

Does the grace period apply to F-1 OPT?

No. OPT has its own limit: no more than 90 days of unemployment in total on post-completion OPT, or 150 days in total including a STEM extension.

Sources

• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2), 60-day grace period
• USCIS: Options for Nonimmigrant Workers Following Termination of Employment (archived page)
• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.2(h)(2)(i)(H), H-1B portability
• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(E), return transportation
• eCFR: 20 CFR 655.731(c)(7)(ii), wages until a bona fide termination
• USCIS: Employment Authorization in Compelling Circumstances
• USCIS: Form I-539 and Form G-1055 Fee Schedule
• USCIS: Form I-485 Supplement J
• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.2(f)(10)(ii)(E), OPT unemployment limits
• CBP: I-94 official website
• U.S. Department of Labor: COBRA and state payday requirements
• Federal Register: Eliminating the Discretionary 60-Day Grace Period (proposed rule, 91 FR 57807)

Last updated 2026-10-18. This guide is general information, not legal advice. Immigration rules and fees change; check the official pages and talk to an immigration attorney about your own case.