The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a
news release on April 22, 2016, stating that
the premium processing clock will start on Thursday, May 12, 2016.
In other words, on May 12, 2016, USCIS will begin premium
processing for cap-subject H-1B petitions.
Readers may recall that an H-1B petitioner may opt to pay an
extra filing fee of $1,225 in exchange for premium or
15-calendar-day processing of an H-1B petition. Premium processing
may be requested along with the filing of the initial petition, or
if the employer has a receipt notice, it may "upgrade" an
already pending H-1B petition to premium processing by filing a
separate request.
Premium processing doesn't guarantee a decision
within 15 days. Rather, it means that action will be taken
on a case within 15 days. That action may be a decision or it may
be a request for evidence if the adjudicator finds something
lacking in the petition. If a request for evidence is issued, then
from the
