Today, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that, starting next week, it will resume premium processing service for certain nonimmigrant and immigrant petitions. The schedule for resumption of premium processing service, which is subject to change, is as follows:
June 1, 2020 - Premium processing to resume for all pending and newly filed I-140 petitions
June 8, 2020 - Premium processing to resume for:
Pending cap-exempt H-1B petitions filed before June 8, 2020 (including cap-exempt petitioners and petitions for beneficiaries already counted against the H-1B cap including pending extensions and change of employer requests).
All other pending I-129 petitions for nonimmigrant classification that are eligible for premium processing (e.g., L-1, O-1, E-2, TN).
June 15, 2020 - Premium processing to resume for:
Newly filed H-1B cap-exempt petitions, which can be filed with a concurrent request for premium processing where cap-exemption is based on either:
The Petitioner being a cap-exempt institution; OR
The beneficiary being cap-exempt based on a Conrad/IGA waiver under section 214(l) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
June 22, 2020 - Premium processing to resume for all other Form I-129 petitions, including:
All FY2021 cap-subject petitions (including upgrades for pending cases and concurrent premium processing request for newly submitted petitions)
All other newly filed I-129 petitions for nonimmigrant classification that are eligible for premium processing (e.g., L-1, O-1, E-2, TN and remaining H-1B petitions).
As noted above, USCIS has stated that all dates are subject to change.
D&S will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as they become available.