The US Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced an increase in fees for premium processing of several immigration benefits, including the H-1B visa, effective March 1. The premium processing fee has been raised to account for inflation from June 2023 through June 2025. These changes impact key employment-based and non-immigrant filings commonly used by foreign professionals, including Indian nationals in the US.
Under the updated fee schedule, the premium processing fee for Form I-129 petitions for H-2B or R-1 nonimmigrant status will increase from $1,685 to $1,780. Additionally, premium processing for various Form I-129 classifications such as H-1B, L-1, O-1, P-1, and TN visas will rise from $2,805 to $2,965. USCIS also stated that the premium processing fee for Form I-140 immigrant petitions for alien workers will now be $2,965, up from $2,805.
Moreover, premium processing fees will see an increase for certain applications to extend or change nonimmigrant status. For Form I-539 applications covering F-1 and F-2 students, J-1 and J-2 exchange visitors, and M-1 and M-2 vocational students, the fee will go up from $1,965 to $2,075. Applicants seeking expedited employment authorization will also face a higher premium processing fee for Form I-765 applications, including Optional Practical Training (OPT) and STEM-OPT classifications, which will rise from $1,685 to $1,780.
The additional revenue generated by these fee adjustments will be utilized to support agency operations, according to USCIS. The agency aims to enhance premium processing services, improve adjudication processes, address processing backlogs, and fund USCIS adjudication and naturalization services. These fee changes are expected to directly impact Indian professionals, students, and employers, who are significant users of H-1B, L-1, employment-based green card, and OPT filings.
Premium processing is commonly utilized by employers and applicants for quicker adjudication timelines related to job changes, extensions, travel planning, and status certainty. Indian nationals, who are major beneficiaries of US employment-based visas like the H-1B program, are likely to be notably affected by these changes. Additionally, Indian students graduating from US universities frequently rely on Optional Practical Training and STEM-OPT extensions as a pathway to longer-term work visas like the H-1B.
