NPZ Immigration Law Blog

It was recently announced that USCIS Service Center Operations indicated that it is on track to resume premium processing for all H-1B petitions on or before October 3rd, 2017.

On September 18th, 2017, USCIS issued a press release stating that it resumed premium processing for all H-1B visa petitions subject to the Fiscal Year year (FY) 2018 cap.

The FY 2018 cap has been set at 65,000 visas. Premium processing has also resumed for the annual 20,000 additional petitions that are set aside to hire workers with a U.S. master’s degree or higher educational degree. In that press release USCIS also stated that premium processing remains temporarily suspended for all other H-1B petitions, such as extensions of stay. USCIS plans to resume premium processing for all other remaining H 1B petitions not subject to the FY 2018 cap, as agency workloads permit.

H-1B visas provide skilled workers for a wide range of specialty occupations, including information technology, academic research, and accounting. When a petitioner requests the agency’s premium processing service, USCIS guarantees a 15-day processing time. If the 15-calendar day processing time is not met, the agency will refund the petitioner’s premium processing service fee and continue with expedited processing of the application. This service is only available for pending petitions, not new submissions, since USCIS received enough petitions in April to meet the FY 2018 cap.

The immigration lawyers and attorneys at NPZ Law Group are expecting an official announcement on this issue from USCIS in the next several days.

If you should have any questions or need more information about the way that the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Laws may impact you, your family, your friends or your colleagues, please feel free to contact the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Lawyers at the NPZ Law Group – VISASERVE – U.S. Immigration and Nationality Lawyers by e-mail us at info@visaserve.com or by calling us at 201-670-0006 (x107) or by visiting our Law Firm’s website at http://www.visaserve.com.