The USCIS has announced that, as of March 11th of this year, premium processing has been resumed for all H-1B petitions. If you have not yet filed your petition during this H-1B filing cap season and would like to use premium processing, the suspension has been lifted.
The H-1B filing window is currently open, and we anticipate that it will close at the end of 5 business days after April 1st, so that means you likely have until the 5th to file your petition. Any petitions filed after the window closes will be rejected. Therefore, be sure to file as soon as possible. If you are planning on using the premium processing service now that it is available, you need to file an I-907 request for premium processing form and include the $1,410 filing fee.
The USCIS will adjudicate all petitions that are filed with premium processing within 15 business days. However, if the Service is unable to process your petition in that time, your premium processing fee will be refunded to you and your petition will be processed as usual.
Lastly, remember that premium processing does not increase your chances of being selected and it does not allow cap-subject beneficiaries to begin working before October 1st. With this in mind, you may want to consider whether or not premium processing is appropriate for cap-subject petitions. If your petition is not cap-subject, or if you are responding to an RFE, premium processing is likely to be much more beneficial to your case. However, the best course of action is to consult with your immigration attorney before making any decisions.
Related H-1B Topics
- H-1B Visa Cap 2018-19
- H-1B to Green Card
- H-1B Visa Requirements
- H-1B Benefits
- H-1B Visa Process
- H-1B Visa Processing Fees
- H-1B Visa Documents
- H-1B Processing Time
- H-1B Annual Cap
- H-1B Visa Stamping
- H-1B Visa Transfer
