Premium Processing for Certain I-140 Preference Petitions
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reinstituted Premium Processing on a limited basis for certain employment-based immigrant I-140 Preference Petitions. USCIS will accept Form 1-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, for I-140 Petitions filed for alien Beneficiaries who meet all of the following specific criteria:
- Are currently in H-1B nonimmigrant status.
- Have reached, or will reach within 60 days, the end of the sixth year of their H-1B nonimmigrant stay.
- Are not eligible for permanent residence because of backlogs in the applicable preference category
- Are not eligible for a one year H-1B extension on the basis of a labor certification application filed at least 365 prior to reaching the end of the sixth year in H-1B status.
Please contact us if you believe that you are eligible to take advantage of this new Premium Process rule.
Employment Authorization Documents
Beginning this month, USCIS will issue Employment Authorization cards valid for two years to certain foreign nationals who have filed I-485 Applications to become lawful permanent residents. To be eligible for the two-year EAD, the applicant must be unable to actually become an LPR because of backlogs in the applicable immigrant preference category. Applicants who have filed I-485 and EAD applications, but who are not subject to a preference category backlog, will continue to get EAD cards that are valid for only one-year. Stay tuned on how this will play out in reality.
TN Visa Update
USCIS has published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking which will increase the validity period of a TN-1 admission for a professional worker from Canada or Mexico under NAFTA. USCIS regulations currently permit TN workers to apply for an initial period of stay of only one year, which can then be extended annually in one year increments. The proposed rule will extend that maximum period of initial TN admission to three years and will allow TN workers to be granted an extension of stay in increments of up to three years. TN visas holders are not subject to a maximum period of stay and may seek multiple extensions.