In a Press Release dated September 22, 2006, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will further expand its Premium Processing (PP) service for employment based I-140 petitions.  In addition to I-140 Petitions for Employment-Based 3rd preference (EB-3) professionals and skilled workers, USCIS will Premium Process the following I-140 petitions:

• EB-1 outstanding professors and researchers;
• EB-2 members of professions with advanced degrees or exceptional ability not seeking a National Interest Waiver; and
• EB-3 workers other than professionals and skilled workers (i.e., unskilled labor requiring less than two years of experience).

USCIS will begin accepting these additional I-140 Petitions for Premium Processing on September 25, 2006.

Under Premium Processing, for a surcharge of $1,000, the USCIS will either approve, deny, or issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) within 15 calendar days of receiving the application or petition.  Premium Processing is limited to applications and petitions filed by employers, and is not available on family-based petitions or individual applications, such as adjustment of status.

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