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INS Premium
Processing
Tuesday, July 24, 2001 - INS How to Use the Premium Processing Service What is it? Premium Processing Service will provide American businesses with the opportunity to obtain faster processing of a petition to meet their needs for a foreign worker. Specifically, the INS will provide 15-calendar day processing to those who choose to use this service or the INS will refund the Premium Processing fee and the relating case will continue to receive expeditious service. The processing period that will be used to determine whether or not the INS meets the 15-day period will begin when the I-907 is delivered to the INS (at the appropriate address) and will end upon the INS mailing of a notice. The notice may be a notice of approval, request for evidence, intent to deny or notice of investigation for fraud or misrepresentation. If the notice requires the submission of additional evidence or of a response to an intent to deny, a new 15-day period will begin upon the delivery to the INS of a complete response to the request for evidence or notice of intent to deny. 
Who is eligible? Upon implementation of the program on June 1, 2001, those employers who file a Form I-129 to classify a beneficiary under one of the following nonimmigrant categories may request Premium Processing Service: E-1, E-2, H-2A, H-2B, H-3, L-1, O-1, O-2, P-1, P-2, P-3 and Q-1. On July 30, 2001 the INS will also make this service available to employers who wish to file a Form I-129 to classify a beneficiary as an H-1B, TN or R nonimmigrant.
Will the INS expand who is eligible to request Premium Processing Service further? The INS will review the program and evaluate the ability to incorporate additional forms into the program on a regular basis. No specific forms or dates for incorporating new forms have been identified at this time. It is noted, however, that statutory authority limits the INS to expanding only to other employment-based forms.
May the beneficiary of a visa petition seek premium processing? No. Only the visa petitioner, or the attorney or representative who has filed a notice of appearance (Form G-28) on behalf of the visa petitioner, may seek premium processing.
What is the fee? The fee for this service is $1000. The Premium Processing fee may not be waived. In addition to the Premium Processing fee, all filing fees relating to the Form I-129 must also be submitted. The Premium Processing fee must be submitted in a separate check or money order.
Are there any additional benefits to the program? Yes. The INS has provided not only a unique mailing address for its Premium Processing customers, but it has also established a special phone number and e-mail address for each of the Service Centers. These special communications channels will be used solely by Premium Processing customers. The INS is also collecting, on the Form I-907, your phone number, fax number and e-mail address so that we may correspond with you in the most appropriate manner. Premium Processing customers should be prepared to receive information on their case through any of these three types of communication. In addition, the INS will allow I-539 applications for dependents to receive the same expeditious processing as the principal family member’s I-129 petition -- at no additional cost if they are filed at the same time.
Does this program have any effect on the INS’ previous expedite practices? Yes. The discretionary expedite requests will no longer be available for those classifications who have been designated as eligible to file for Premium Processing Services except in the case of a petitioner who has been designated as non-profit by the Internal Revenue Service. Petitioners who have been designated as non-profit may continue to request discretionary expedited service with the Service Centers as the have in the past or they may choose to pay the Premium Processing fee and utilize that service. If the criteria for a discretionary expedite is not met and the Service Center denies such a request the non-profit petitioner still has the option of requesting Premium Processing Service by filing a Form I-907 with fee.
How will the Service manage those categories that have an annual limit in relation to this faster processing? The Service is designating certain nonimmigrant classifications that are subject to annual numerical limitations for Premium Processing Service. The Service does not believe that individuals who pay for Premium Processing Service on petitions filed for these classifications will have an unfair access to these limited immigration programs as long as the numerical limitations exceed the demand the programs. Therefore, the Service will process Premium Processing and expedite requests of petitions for these nonimmigrant classifications in the order they are received, as well as chronologically process all other petitions filed for these classifications according to normal procedures. However, in order to ensure equitable access to these limited programs, the Service will temporarily terminate the availability of Premium Processing Service for nonimmigrant classifications that are subject to annual numerical limitations when it becomes clear that the demand for a particular nonimmigrant classification will exceed the annual numerical limitation (e.g., when the Service has a pending volume of petitions sufficient to reach the limitation). This termination procedure will ensure that all petitioners have equitable access to these limited immigration programs. The Service will announce temporary termination of a designation of a nonimmigrant classification for Premium Processing Service by publication of a notice in the Federal Register. The temporary termination will apply only to petitions filed for the fiscal year in which the termination is announced. When the Service announces temporary termination of Premium Processing Service for a particular nonimmigrant classification, it will return the Form I-907 and Premium Fee for all requests subject to the termination.
Can I contact the Service Center if I haven’t filed a request for premium processing yet but have questions about the program? Yes. You can contact the Service Centers using their e-mail address (listed below and on the instructions to the Form I-907) with your questions about the program. Currently the phone lines shown below are dedicated only to customers who have already submitted a request for Premium Processing Service.
How do I contact the Service Center concerning the Premium Processing request that I filed? The unique mailing address for each of the Service Centers is listed on the instructions to the Form I-907. Additional contact information for each Service Center will be provided to you on your receipt notice and will also be provided on this Website. If you have already filed a Request for Premium Processing and you need to contact the Center you can contact using the following phone lines. Remember these phone numbers are for inquiries relating only to Premium Processing cases. The employee who answers your call will not be able to answer questions relating to any case that was not filed under the Premium Processing Service Program. California Service Center Premium Processing phone line: (949) 831-8550 Nebraska Service Center Premium Processing phone line: (402) 474-5012 Texas Service Center Premium Processing phone line: (214) 275-4415 Vermont Service Center Premium Processing phone line: (802) 527-3192 Alternately, you may e-mail the Service Center with which you have filed a Premium Processing case at the following e-mail addresses: CSC.Premium.Processing@usdoj.gov NSC.Premium.Processing@usdoj.gov TSC.Premium.Processing@usdoj.gov VSC.Premium.Processing@usdoj.gov E-mail delivered to these accounts that do not relate to Premium Processing services will be deleted without reply to insure our availability to Premium Processing customers.
How do I file a Request for Premium Processing? Complete and sign Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service. Attach a separate remittance of $1000. The I-907 may be forwarded to the Service Center where your I-129 petition is already pending OR you may file the I-907 and I-129 together at the Service Center designated as the appropriate filing location on the instructions to the I-129. In both situations the unique address shown on the Form I-907 should be used for proper delivery to the Service Center’s Premium Processing Service unit.
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