Good news for healthcare providers, USCIS has now resumed premium processing for H-1B petitions filed under the Conrad 30 Waiver program, as well as interested government agency waivers.
By way of background, J-1 medical doctors must receive a waiver of the 2-year residence requirement prior to acquiring H-1B status, which can take several months. On April 3, 2017, USCIS temporarily suspended premium processing for all H-1B petitions in order to address the growing backlog of these cases. While USCIS initially reported that the suspension would last for up to six months, officials have recently indicated that this service will be gradually phased back in by case type "as workloads permit."
The resumption of premium processing for the Conrad 30 program is welcome news for healthcare facilities that rely on J-1 alumni to overcome shortages of qualified doctors in their areas. This development also suggests that premium processing could soon resume for additional H-1B categories, assuming USCIS continues to make progress in reducing H-1B backlogs.
Green and Spiegel will continue to monitor the H-1B premium processing suspension and will provide updates as they become available.
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