On December 27, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will increase the fee for Premium Processing, effective February 26, 2024.

In accordance with the USCIS Stabilization Act, codified through the USCIS Stabilization Rule by the inflationary adjustment calculation provided by INA 286(u)(3)(C), 8 U.S.C. 1356(u)(3)(C), the Premium Processing fees for currently designated case types will increase. Any Premium Processing requests postmarked on or after Monday, February 26, 2024 must include the new fee.

A summary of the Premium Processing fee increases based on case types are listed below:

Form Current Fee New Fee
Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker

$1,500 (H-2B or R-1 nonimmigrant status)

$2,500 (All other available Form I-129 classifications (E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-3, L-1A, L-1B, LZ, O-1, O-2, P-1, P-1S, P-2, P-2S, P-3, P-3S, Q-1, TN-1, and TN-2))

$1,685 (H-2B or R-1 nonimmigrant status)

$2,805 (All other available Form I-129 classifications (E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-3, L-1A, L-1B, LZ, O-1, O-2, P-1, P-1S, P-2, P-2S, P-3, P-3S, Q-1, TN-1, and TN-2))

Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker

(Employment-based (EB) classifications E11, E12, E21 (non-NIW), E31, E32, EW3, E13 and E21 (NIW))

 $2,500 $2,805

Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status

(Form I-539 classifications F-1, F-2, M-1, M-2, J-1, J-2, E-1, E-2, E-3, L-2, H-4, O-3, P-4, and R-2)

 $1,750 $1,965

Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization

(Certain F-1 students with categories C03A, C03B, C03C)

 $1,500 $1,685


USCIS will continue to have the authority to suspend Premium Processing services, though this authority will be limited to instances where USCIS cannot complete a "significant number" of premium requests within the required time period.

For more information, please contact your Mintz Immigration attorney.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.