After several seasons of suspending the premium processing service in connection with H-1B Cap-Subject petitions due to “high demand,” this cycle, USCIS announced that the agency would offer premium processing service in a two-phased approach. For background, premium processing is an expedited processing option pursuant to which USCIS will take action on a petition/application within 15 calendar days of receipt for an additional fee of $1,410.
For FY 2020 cap-subject petitions, USCIS first processed those petitions requesting a Change of Status – presumably to better ensure timely adjudication of petitions for which the beneficiaries are F-1 students relying on “cap gap” prior to the effective cut-off of October 1. “Cap gap” is a provision through which F-1 students, commonly in OPT/STEM OPT periods of authorized employment at the time of filing the H-1B cap-subject petition but whose authorization expires during the pendency of the H-1B petition, are granted status coverage until either USCIS takes final adjudicative action on the petition or until October 1 – whichever is sooner.
USCIS has now announced that it will begin processing the remaining H-1B cap-subject petitions that requested premium processing, effective June 10. Importantly, employers who did not elect premium processing at the time of filing may now submit a request to upgrade the petition to expedited review. You should discuss with your immigration counsel the pros and cons of electing to use premium processing service before deciding to do so, as there are nuanced practical considerations to take into account.
Unrelatedly, in the same announcement USCIS also stated that between June 10 and June 24, they will not be using pre-paid return mailers to send out premium processing approval notices for approved petitions not requesting a Change of Status. The agency will, instead, use regular mail. It explains that this will increase expediency in the issuance of impacted approval notices.