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Immigration News
USCIS Announces Premium Processing for EB3 I-140 Petitions
August 18, 2006
USCIS announced today the initiation of premium processing service
for EB3 (employment based, third preference) I-140 petitions for
professionals and skilled workers beginning August 28, 2006. The
EB3 "Professionals" category is for positions requiring
an individual holding a bachelor's degree who are members of the
professions; the EB3 "Skilled Worker" category is for
positions requiring at least two years of education, training or
experience.
Under the Premium Processing Service, petitioners pay an additional
processing fee of $1,000, and in return, USCIS promises to issue
either an approval notice, or where appropriate, a request for evidence,
a notice of intent to deny, or open an investigation for fraud or
misrepresentation, within 15 calendar days of receipt. If the petition
is not processed within 15 calendar days, USCIS will refund the
$1,000 fee and continue to process the request as part of the Premium
Processing Service.
Premium processing may be requested when an employer initially
files a petition, or it may be requested when a petition is already
pending. Accordingly, starting on August 28, employers will be able
to "upgrade" any pending I-140 petitions to premium processing.
Given the severe priority date backlog currently affecting the
EB-3 category, it is unlikely many petitioners will opt for premium
processing since getting an I-140 approval sooner without a "current"
priority date does not mean the foreign national employee will be
able to adjust his/her status to permanent residence any sooner.
However, for H-1B employees whose H-1B status will reach the six-year
limit in less than one year, premium processing of I-140 can be
of tremendous benefit. This is because the American Competitiveness
in the Twenty-First Century Act (AC21) allows one to extend his/her
H-1B status beyond the normal six year limit if that person is the
beneficiary of an EB1, EB2, or EB3 I-140 petition, and is eligible
to be granted that status but for application of the per country
limitations (i.e., priority date retrogression). In such cases,
getting an I-140 approval before the H-1B employee reaches the end
of his/her sixth year will allow the employee to stay and continue
working without
interruption.
It is expected that Premium Processing Service will be expanded
to include I-140 petitions for other preference categories in the
near future (e.g., EB1 and EB2 categories).
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