U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Expands Premium Processing to Certain OPT and STEM OPT Applications

On March 6, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the expansion of the I-907 premium processing request for certain OPT and STEM OPT applications. The premium processing fee is $1,500 and the processing time frame is 30 calendar days after USCIS receives completed applications from students.

The expansion will occur in two phases:

• Effective immediately — USCIS will accept Form I-907 premium processing requests, filed via paper form or online, for F-1 students with a pending I-765 employment authorization (EAD) application if the student is filing for pre completion OPT, post-completion OPT, or for STEM OPT extension.
• Effective April 3 — USCIS will accept Form I-907 premium processing requests, filed via paper form or online, from students filing forms I-907 concurrently with OPT or STEM OPT applications. USCIS will reject premium processing requests for concurrently filed OPT and STEM OPT applications if they receive them before April 3.

USCIS has also announced that they are working on implementing the expansion of premium processing for Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status. They anticipate this option will be available in May 2023.

Visit USCIS and Fragomen for more detailed information.