USCIS Will Phase in Premium Processing for I-129 and I-140 Petitions

USCIS will phase in premium processing for I-129 and I-140 petitions in June 2020, as outlined below.

Effective June 1, 2020, USCIS will accept Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing for all eligible Form I-140 petitions.

As of June 8, USCIS will accept premium processing requests for:

• H-1B petitions filed before June 8 that are pending adjudication and are cap-exempt (e.g., petitions cap-exempt petitions and petitions for beneficiaries previously counted toward the cap).
• All other Form I-129 petitions (non H-1B petitions) for nonimmigrant classifications eligible for premium processing filed before June 8, 2020, that are pending adjudication.

Beginning June 15, 2020, USCIS will resume premium processing for H-1B petitions requesting premium processing by filing an I-907 concurrently with their I-129 (or request for a petition filed on or after June 8, 2020, and exempt from the cap because:

• The employer is cap-exempt or because the beneficiary will be employed at a qualifying cap-exempt institution, entity or organization (such as an institution of higher education, a nonprofit research organization or a governmental research organization). Or,
• The beneficiary is cap-exempt based on a Conrad/IGA waiver under INA section 214(l).

On June 22, USCIS will resume premium processing for all other Form I-129 petitions including:

• All H-1B cap-subject petitions (including those for FY2021), including change of status from F-1 nonimmigrant status, for both premium processing upgrades and concurrently filed I-907s.
• All other Form I-129 petitions eligible for premium processing and requesting premium processing by filing an I-907 concurrently with an I-129.
• All dates are subject to change as USCIS continues to take on more premium processing requests. USCIS will announce any changes to these dates accordingly.

Previous Announcement Suspending Premium Processing due to COVID-19

On March 20, 2020, USCIS announced temporary suspension of premium processing for all Form I-129 and I-140 petitions due to the COVID-19 epidemic. USCIS continues to process any petition with a previously accepted Form I-907 in accordance with premium processing criteria. Petitioners who had already filed Form I-129 or Form I-140 using premium processing before the March 20, 2020, suspension, but received no action and a refund, may refile Form I-907 consistent with the timeline above, barring any changes USCIS may announce in the future.

See USCIS H-1B page.