Premium Processing for H-1B Visas

Last year, USCIS temporarily suspended premium processing for certain categories of H-1B petitions including cap-subject petitions. USCIS announced last week that premium processing will resume today for all fiscal year 2019 H-1B cap petitions. This includes those that qualify for the advanced degree exemption. However, the temporary suspension remains in place for all of the other categories of H-1B petitions it applied to. USCIS hopes to resume premium processing for other categories of H-1B petitions as USCIS workloads allow.

What is premium processing?

When a petitioner requests premium processing using Form I-907, USCIS guarantees a 15 calendar day processing time. If USCIS does not take action within that 15-day period, the petitioner's premium processing fee is refunded and the petition will continue to be processed quickly. Premium processing is currently available for pending petitions only, not new ones, because the fiscal year 2019 cap on the number of premium processing petitions has already been met.

For more information:

Read the USCIS article about the suspension of premium processing for H-1B Petitions here.

Learn more about how to use the premium processing service here.

This blog post does not serve as legal advice and does not establish any client-attorney privilege. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our legal team directly.

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