WASHINGTON— Indian professionals seeking US employment visas and international students planning to work after graduation could face longer waits for immigration decisions as the Trump administration considers changes to premium processing timelines.
The proposed regulation, now under review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), could extend the time the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) takes to act on eligible applications, even when applicants or employers pay additional fees for expedited service.
Premium Processing Changes
The proposal comes as premium processing fees range from $1,780 to $2,965, depending on the application category, following an increase that took effect in March 2026.
Premium processing is an optional USCIS service that allows eligible applicants and employers to seek faster action on certain immigration petitions and applications by paying an additional fee.
Under the current system, processing timeframes are generally 15, 30 or 45 business days, depending on the immigration benefit requested.
The service covers several employment-related filings, including Form I-129 petitions for nonimmigrant workers, such as H-1B visa holders, and Form I-140 employment-based immigrant petitions.
Certain Form I-765 employment authorisation applications and Form I-539 applications to extend or change nonimmigrant status are also eligible.
Premium processing does not guarantee approval. USCIS may issue an approval, a request for evidence or a notice of intent to deny within the applicable timeframe, meaning applicants may still need to provide additional documentation before their cases can proceed.
Impact On Indians
Indian professionals could be affected if the government extends the current timelines for eligible employment-based applications.
H-1B workers and their sponsoring employers often rely on faster decisions when managing job changes, employment authorisation and other immigration-related deadlines.
International students could also face uncertainty, particularly those seeking optional practical training (OPT) employment authorisation after completing their studies.
Eligible F-1 student applications for OPT currently have a 30-business-day premium processing timeframe, while certain applications to change status to F, M or J categories also carry a 30-business-day period.
Employment-based green card applicants may be affected as well. Certain multinational executive and manager petitions under the EB-1 category, along with EB-2 national interest waiver petitions, have a 45-business-day timeframe, while other eligible employment-based petitions generally have a 15-business-day period.
Immigration services provider Fragomen has reported that USCIS has exceeded existing premium processing timeframes in some cases in recent months, including applications for which applicants or employers paid the additional fee.
Any formal extension could therefore add to concerns about processing delays, although the government has not disclosed the proposed rule’s specific provisions.
What Happens Next
The proposal must clear federal review before USCIS publishes it in the Federal Register for public comment.
The comment period is generally expected to last 30 to 60 days, after which the government would review feedback and issue a final regulation before implementing any changes, Hindustan Times reported.
The process could take several months, and the exact timeline remains uncertain.
Until the government finalises the rule and establishes its effective date, applicants should continue to refer to current USCIS requirements rather than assume that premium processing deadlines have changed.
The proposed timeline revision is separate from the March 2026 fee increase. Applicants and employers should monitor official USCIS announcements for details on the final rule, the affected application categories and any revised processing periods.
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