Today, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced the reinstatement of premium processing service for H-1B petitions filed by certain cap-exempt petitioners. In addition to petitioners who seek to employ physicians who are recipients of Conrad 30 waivers, H-1B petitioners who meet the following criteria may now also request premium processing:
- Institutions of higher education;
- Nonprofits related to or affiliated with an institution of higher education; or
- Nonprofit research or governmental research organizations.
USCIS also announced that premium processing will resume for H-1B petitions that may be exempt, if the beneficiary will be employed at a qualifying cap-exempt institution, organization or entity.
We will update this entry as more information is available.
You May Also Be Interested In
On December 2, 2025, in response to the shooting of 2 national guardsman in Washington, DC by an Afghan national, USCIS issued a national security policy memo suspending the adjudication of petitions and applications for immigration-related benefits for those from 19 “high-risk” countries, as well as re-reviewing previously-approved benefits for individuals from those countries (Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela).
Congress was unable to avert the first government shutdown in six years as the clock struck midnight last night raising questions from companies and individuals about the impact on US immigration operations.
As we approach the H-1B cap season for fiscal year 2026, it is crucial for employers and prospective H-1B candidates to stay informed about the registration process, important deadlines, and recent changes.
UPDATE – Phase 3 of Stage 1 will begin on August 1, 2022 and include pending I-140 petitions in the EB-1C Multinational Executive/Manager category that were filed with USCIS on or before July 1, 2021 and pending I-140 petitions in the EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) category that were filed with USCIS on or before August 1, 2021.
----------------------------------------
Stage 1 of USCIS’s previously announced Premium Processing Expansion program is set to begin on June 1, 2022. Stage 1 will focus on I-140 petitions and will be rolled out in phases, with only long-pending cases eligible to upgrade to premium processing in the coming months.
Search
Recent Posts
Categories
- Adjustment of Status
- Asylum
- Business Immigration
- CBP
- CIS
- Consular Processing
- Court Decisions
- COVID-19
- DED
- Deferred Action
- DHS
- DOL
- E-Verify
- EAD
- Enforcement
- F-1
- Federal Agencies
- Federal Laws/Legislation
- Global Immigration
- H-1B
- H-2B
- Homeland Security
- Humanitarian Relief
- I-9
- ICE
- Immigrant Visas
- L-1
- Labor Certification
- Legislation
- Naturalization
- News & Events
- Nonimmigrant Visas
- Other
- Processing Times
- REAL ID
- Refugees
- SSA
- State Department
- State Laws/Legislation
- TN
- TPS
- US Embassies
- USCIS
- Visa Lottery
- Visa Waiver Program
- Waivers
- Workplace Enforcement
Tags
- AC21
- ACA
- ACWIA
- Adam Rosser
- Adjustment of Status
- Adjustment of Status Applicant
- Adoption
- Advance Parole
- Agencies
- AILA
- Air Travel
- Alien Registration Requirement
- Application Service Centers
- Appropriations
- Arizona
- Asia
- Asylee
- Asylum
- Attorney General
- Awards
- B-1 Business Visitor
- B-1/B-2
- B-2 Tourist
- BALCA
- Biometrics
- Blanket L-1
- Board of Immigration Appeals
- Bob Quackenboss
- Brazil
- Brett Burns
- Brexit
- BRIDGE ACT
- Business Existence
- Business Immigration
- Business Immigration; USCIS; National Interest Waiver; labor certification
- Business Travel
- Buy American Hire American
- California
- Canada
- Cap
- Cap-Exempt
- Cap-Subject
- CARES Act
- CBP
- CDC
- Certification
- Chad
- Chaffetz
- Chambers USA
- Change In Location
- Change In Work Site
- Charities
- China
- Chris Pardo
- Citizenship
- Compliance
- Consular Processing
- Controlled Technology
- Coronavirus/COVID-19
- Court
- Covid test
- CPT
- Current Events
- Customer Identity Verification
- Customs and Border Protection
- DACA
- Decisions
- DED
- Deemed Export
- Deferred Action
- Deferred Inspection
- Department of Homeland Security
- Department of Justice
- Department of Labor
- Department of State
- DHS
- Diversity Visa
- Diversity Visa Lottery
- DOL
- DOMA
- Domestic Violence
- Donald Trump
- DOS
- DREAM Act
- Driver License
- DS-160
- DV Lottery
- DV-2019 Dates
- E visa
- E-1
- E-2
- E-2 investors
- E-2 Spouse
- E-2 Visas
- E-3
- E-3 Australians
- E-3 Spouse
- E-Verify
- E13
- E21
- EAD
- EADs
- EAR
- Earthquake
- EB-1
- EB-1 Backlog
- EB-2
- EB-3
- EB-5
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Electronic System for Travel Authorization
- Embassy
- Emily Burkhardt Vicente
- Employer
- Employment Authorization
- Employment Eligibility Verification
- Employment-Based Immigration
- ESTA
- Ethiopia
- ETIAS
- European Union
- eVerify
- Executive Order
- Executive Orders
- Exempt Employee
- Export
- Export License
- F-1
- Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act
- Family
- Family Relationships
- FAR
- Federal
- Federal Acquisitions Regulation
- Federal Contracts
- Federal Law
- Fees
- Filing Fees
- Fingerprinting
- Fingerprints
- Fiscal Year 2016
- Foreign Grads
- Form 140
- Form I-9
- Form I-944
- Form Updates
- Fourth Circuit
- France
- Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate
- Full Vaccination
- Furlough
- FY15
- FY2017
- FY2020
- Georgia
- Global Entry
- Global Mobility
- Golden Arrow
- Grace Period
- Green Card
- Greg Robertson
- Guam
- Guinea
- H-1B
- H-1B Cap
- H-1B Registration
- H-1B Workers
- H-1B1
- H-2
- H-2B
- H-4
- H-4 EAD
- H-4 Spouse
- H-4 Spouses
- Haiti
- Hawaii
- Help HAITI Act
- HIV
- Holly Williamson
- Homeland Security
- Honduras
- HR 1044
- Humanitarian Relief
- Hunton Andrews Kurth
- I-129
- I-140
- I-20
- I-485
- I-539
- I-601A
- I-765
- I-9
- I-94
- I-94 Automation
- Ian Band
- ICE
- iCert
- Identification Document
- Illinois
- Immediate Relatives
- Immigrant
- Immigrant Investor Program
- Immigrant Visa
- Immigrant Visas
- Immigration
- Immigration & Customs Enforcement
- Immigration in Sports
- Immigration News
- Immigration Uncertainty
- India
- Infopass
- International Offices
- Interns
- interview
- Interview Appointment
- Iran
- Iraq
- IRCA
- ITAR
- J-1
- Japan
- Josefina Augusto
- Juan Enjamio
- Kurt Larkin
- Kurt Powell
- L Visa
- L-1
- L-1 Intracompany Transferees
- L-1B
- L-2
- L-2 Spouse
- Labor
- Labor Certification
- Labor Market Test
- LCA
- Legal 500
- Legal Resident Aliens
- Legislation
- Liberia
- Liberian Nationals
- Libya
- License
- Limited Vaccine Availability
- Litigation
- Liya Green
- Lottery
- LPR
- M-1
- M-274
- M. Brett Burns
- Maryland
- Matter of A-B-
- Medical Exams
- Mexico
- Multinational Manager
- N-400
- NAFTA
- National Interest Exception
- National Interest Waiver
- National Labor Relations Board
- National Law Journal
- National Prevailing Wage Center
- National Visa Center
- Naturalization
- Natz
- Nepal
- New York
- News & Events
- NEXUS
- Nicaragua
- Nicaraqua
- Ninth Circuit
- NIV
- NLRB
- No-Match
- Nonimmigrant
- Nonimmigrant Visas
- Nonresident Alien
- North Korea
- Northern Mariana Islands
- NTA
- NVC
- O visa
- O-1
- Office Closures
- OPT
- Oregon
- P-1
- Passport
- Pérez v. Pérez
- PERM
- Permanent Residents
- Policy
- Portability
- Practical Training
- Preclearance
- Preflight Inspection
- Premium Processing
- Prescreening
- Presidential Proclamation
- Prevailing Wage Request
- Priority Date
- Pro Bono
- Processing Times
- Prohibited Entry
- Prosecutorial Discretion
- Provisional Waivers
- Public Access Files
- Public Charge
- REAL ID
- Reciprocity
- Recognitions
- Recovery Rebate
- Reducing Salary
- Refugee
- Refugees
- Registry
- RFE
- Rugby
- Ryan Glasgow
- Safe-Harbor
- Same-Sex
- Satisfactory Departure
- SAVE Jobs USA
- Scott Nelson
- SCOTUS
- Section 1
- Selective Service
- SENTRI
- Sessions
- Shaena Rowland
- Sierra Leone
- Social Media
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Special Events
- State Department
- State Law
- Stateside Waivers
- STEM OPT
- Stepchildren
- Stephen Pattison
- Sudan
- Supplementary Lottery
- Supreme Court
- Syria
- Tax Credit
- Temporary Visas
- Terence Connor
- Texas
- TN
- TN visa
- TPS
- Tracker 8
- Trailblazer
- Trainees
- Transit Without a Visa
- Travel
- Travel Ban
- Travel Bonds
- Travel Restrictions
- Trump Administration
- Trusted Traveler
- Tsunami
- U Visa
- U.S. Customs & Border Protection
- U.S. Department of State
- U.S. Embassies
- Ukraine
- UN
- Unemployment
- Unemployment Benefits
- Unfair Labor Practices
- Unlawful Presence
- US Citizenship and Immigration Services
- US Customs and Border Protection
- US Department of State
- US Embassy
- US passports
- US Travel Ban
- USCBP
- USCIS
- USD140
- USD150
- USD390
- Vaccine Passport
- Venezuela
- VIBE
- Visa
- Visa Bond
- Visa Bulletin
- Visa Control
- Visa Lottery
- Visa Revalidation
- Visa stamp
- Visa Waiver
- Visa Waiver Program
- Visas
- Visitor Visas
- VWP
- Wait Times
- Waivers
- Webinar
- Whistleblower
- WHO
- Windsor v. United States
- Work Authorization
- Work Permits
- Work Search
- Worksite Enforcement
- Worksite Inspection
- World Health Organization
- Yemen