USCIS Resumes Premium Processing for Certain H-1B Cap-Exempt Cases
This morning, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will resume premium processing for certain cap-exempt H-1B petitions effective immediately.
Premium processing will resume for cap-exempt petitions if the H-1B petitioner is:
· An institution of higher education;
· A nonprofit related to or affiliated with an institution of higher education; or
· A nonprofit research or governmental research organization.
Similarly, premium processing will also resume for cap-exempt petitions where the beneficiary will be employed at a qualifying cap-exempt institution, organization or entity.
Effective immediately, cap-exempt petitioners eligible for premium processing can file Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service either together with an H-1B petition or separately for an H-1B petition that is currently pending.
USCIS announced on March 3, 2017 that it would suspend premium processing for "up to six months" on all H-1B petitions, though last month premium processing was reinstated for petitions covered under the Conrad 30 program and interested government agency (IGA) waivers.
For the time being, premium processing remains suspended for all petitions under the H-1B annual "regular cap" of 65,000 visas per year, as well as petitions filed under the "master's cap" of 20,000 visas for beneficiaries with a U.S. master's degree or higher.
In the same press release, USCIS stated its plans to resume premium processing of other H-1B petitions "as workloads permit."
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