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The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made an announcement regarding the premium processing of certain pending I-140 Petitions for alien workers. This includes the EB-1 Multinational Manager and EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) categories starting in June and July 2022, respectively.
Individuals who wish to request a premium processing upgrade for their immigration must file a request for premium processing. By using Form I-907 on or following the applicable effective date starting from June and July 2022.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services had previously announced an incremental expansion of premium processing of certain additional form types. Making these announcements over a period of at least three years and the recent initiative is a part of it.
The current USCIS initiative is a phased-in expansion. That is most likely to impose limitations or conditions on the availability of premium processing. This expansion is for new cases only. This is why they are extending premium processing.
An EB-1C and EB-2 NIW I-140 Processing Overview
Here’s an overview of how the premium processing for EB-1C and EB-2 NIW I-140 will work.
- Starting from June 1st, 2022, theU.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will accept Form I-907 Premium Processing upgrade requests. They will handle these requests for pending EB-1 Multinational Manager Form I-140 petitions. That filed on or before January 1st, 2021.
- The next phase started on July 1st, 2022, resulting in theU.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ acceptance of Form I-907 Premium Processing upgrade requests pending EB-1 Multinational Manager Form I-140 petitions. Individuals should have filed these petitions on or before March 1st, 2021. Moreover, there will be acceptance of pending EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) I-140 petitions filed on or before June 1st, 2021.
- The third phase of Stage 1 began on August 1st, 2022. And focuses on the pending I-140 petitions in the EB-1C Multinational Executive/Manager category filed on or before July 1st, 2021. It includes the handling of pending I-140 petitions in the EB-2 NIW category filed with USCIS on or before August 1st, 2021.
- The premium processing fee will increase to $2,500 for the affected case types. Moreover, the processing time will be 45 days instead of the standard 15 days, which will be measured from the date on which the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) receives all prerequisites for the ongoing case.
The Concern
The USCIS announced earlier this year the availability of the premium processing of certain pending I-140 Forms. According to the statement, premium processing will be available for certain pending Forms I-140 in the EB-1 Multinational Manager and EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) categories. And they will start this new process in June, July, and August, respectively. Thus, will include forms submitted prior to a specified date.
They will require petitioners looking forward to making a request for the premium processing upgrade to fill out and submit Form I-907. In fact, they must submit on or following the applicable effective date, along with a premium processing fee of $2,500.
Premium processing for EB-1C and EB-2 NIW I-140 is a part of the previously announced initiative of USCIS. Regarding the incremental expansion of premium processing of certain additional form types over a period of at least three years. The three-phased expansion is also likely to urge limitations. Or conditions on the availability of premium processing for new case types. In which they extended premium processing.
Understanding the Premium Processing for EB-1C and EB-2 NIW I-140 Petitions
The expansion of premium processing for EB-1C and EB-2 NIW I-140 will occur in three phases.
- Starting June 1st, 2022, USCIS will accept Form I-907 premium processing upgrade requests for pending EB-1 Multinational Manager petitions. The upgrades can be requested for petitions that were filed on or before January 1st, 2021.
- Starting July 1st, 2022, USCIS will accept Form I-907 premium processing upgrade requests for:
- Pending EB-1 Multinational Manager petitions that were filed on or before March 1st, 2021; and
- Pending EB-2 NIW petitions that were filed on or before June 1st, 2021.
- Starting August 1st, 2022, USCIS will begin accepting Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, for
- Pending EB-1C multinational executive and manager I-140 petitions received on or before July 1st, 2021.
- Pending EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) I-140 petitions received on or before August 1st, 2021.
Processing Time Limitations
However, USCIS will reject premium processing requests received before the applicable June 1st, 2022, July 1st, 2022, or August 1st, 2022 start date.
The premium processing time required by USCIS to take action on EB-1 Multinational Manager and EB-2 NIW cases will be 45 days. The processing time is way longer than the previous time. Which required 15 days of processing time. But, the revised time frame is to ensure that they can appropriately complete all necessary documentation and interviews. As well as, biometrics or background checks.
Depending upon the type of the case and its requirements, certain cases may take longer to process than the specified 45-day timeframe. The premium processing filing fee for these categories will be $2,500 for each case.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is authorized to adjust and revise the premium processing fees on a biannual basis which will be based on changes in inflation depending upon the fluctuations in the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
Conclusion
They expect the upcoming phase of the premium processing expansion program to include Forms I-539 and I-765 for certain F, M, and J nonimmigrants. The USCIS has estimated that Premium Processing for these case types will not be available until later in 2022. Moreover, USCIS has further announced that premium processing will expand. Which includes Form I-539 for E, H, L, O, P, and R dependents. As well as, Form I-765 for additional applicants by 2025.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding these changes, get in touch with Spirit One which is your legal resource for immigration law and more. Find out more about Spirit One here.
