I-140 Premium Processing: EB-1A in 15 Business Days and EB-2 NIW in 45, According to USCIS

USCIS Premium Processing is an optional, fee-based service that shortens the adjudicative-action timeframe for Form I-140: according to USCIS, the agency commits to acting within 15 business days for most I-140 classifications — including E11, extraordinary ability (EB-1A) — and within 45 business days for the E13 multinational executive and manager classification and the E21 classification with a national interest waiver, EB-2 NIW. If the action does not occur within the applicable period, USCIS states that it refunds the service fee.

What Premium Processing is

USCIS provides expedited processing for four forms: Form I-129, Form I-140, Form I-765, and Form I-539 — in the last two cases, only for designated categories. The service is requested on Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, with its own fee; the I-907 page records the current edition, April 1, 2024, and two filing options: online or by mail.

Form I-140 is, as the official form page states, the petition used for an alien worker to become a lawful permanent resident in the United States. The Premium Processing timeframe applies to the adjudication of that petition — not to the other stages of the residence process — the same background theme as this site’s content on EB-2 NIW.

The central difference lies in the classification stated in the petition. According to the official chart, the 15-business-day period covers six classifications: E11, extraordinary ability; E12, outstanding professors and researchers; E21 not seeking a national interest waiver; E31, skilled workers; E32, professionals; and EW3, other workers.

The 45-business-day period covers two classifications: E13, multinational executives and managers, and E21 seeking a national interest waiver — EB-2 NIW. Since January 30, 2023, USCIS has made the service available for all initial and pending Form I-140 petitions under the E13 and E21 NIW classifications.

Two neighboring petitions thus run on different clocks: an E11 petition (EB-1A) sits in the 15-business-day band, and an E21 petition with NIW in the 45-business-day band. The period counted is the one for adjudicative action, detailed in the next section.

What counts as adjudicative action — and what happens with a request for evidence

According to USCIS, within the applicable period the agency takes one of the following actions on the case: it issues an approval notice, a denial notice, a notice of intent to deny (NOID), or a request for evidence (RFE); or it opens an investigation for fraud or misrepresentation. The official list therefore includes outcomes that differ from one another — the recorded commitment is action on the case within the period, with a refund of the fee when the action does not occur.

When the petition requires the submission of additional evidence or a response to a notice of intent to deny, USCIS records that the premium processing period applicable to the I-140 — 15 or 45 business days, by classification — stops and resets: a new period begins when the agency receives the response to the request for evidence or notice of intent to deny. How that request for evidence works is the topic of this site’s article on the USCIS RFE.

The period begins when the agency receives a properly completed Form I-907 at the correct address — with the information required by the instructions, a valid signature, and the fee from the official schedule.

The current fee: $2,965 since March 1, 2026

The Premium Processing fee for Form I-140 is $2,965 for requests postmarked on or after March 1, 2026. The amount appears in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) final rule published in the Federal Register on January 12, 2026, effective March 1, 2026.

According to the final rule, the adjustment reflects inflation measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) between June 2023 and June 2025 — a change of 5.72%. The previous amount for the I-140 service was $2,805, and the compliance date recorded in the rule is clear: requests postmarked on or after March 1, 2026, carry the new fee.

The rule also records the legal basis for the periodic adjustment, the law known as the USCIS Stabilization Act. On another page, USCIS records a limitation: the fee waiver regulations at 8 CFR 106.3(a) do not provide for a fee waiver for Form I-907. Amounts on other fronts appear in the article on the November 2026 Visa Bulletin.

Who files Form I-907 and how the request is filed

USCIS allows only the petitioner — or the attorney or representative with a Form G-28 — to file the request for a designated petition. The exception is the self-petition, where petitioner and beneficiary are the same person. The beneficiary may pay the fee, but does not sign or file Form I-907.

When Form I-907 is filed together with an initial Form I-140, both forms follow the filing instructions for Form I-140 itself. When the I-140 is already pending, the later request — the upgrade to premium service — is filed with the service center where the petition is currently pending, the same page records, with a copy of the I-797 receipt notice. If the petition was transferred, USCIS records its official recommendation to file the I-907 with the center now handling the case, with a copy of the transfer notice.

There is also a package-composition rule: the request carries only one Form I-907 for the single eligible form or classification. Unrelated Forms I-907 included in the same envelope delay processing, the agency’s record notes. Prior organization of the papers is the same front covered on the page of essential documents for the assessment.

The filing-location change of October 7, 2026

The Form I-907 page carries a recent alert. According to USCIS, on October 7, 2026, the filing location for Form I-907 filed by mail changed, and the applicable address is now determined by the “Where to File” section of the page, based on the reason for filing.

The same alert records a 30-day grace period: the agency accepts forms postmarked on or before November 9, 2026, that are sent to any prior filing location. For Form I-140 petitions filed together with Form I-907, USCIS records a distinct consequence: both forms are rejected when they are not filed at the correct location, which is based on the underlying petition.

For a standalone Form I-907, the guidance page records another rule: a form mistakenly filed at a service center without geographic jurisdiction over the petition is not rejected, but one filed at a lockbox is — and, in incorrect filings, the period begins on the date the correct center receives the file. Deadlines defined by official texts are also the theme of the content on losing a green card through abandonment of residence.

The scope of the service: the petition, inside the residence process

Form I-140 is one stage of employment-based permanent residence, and Premium Processing applies to the adjudication of that petition. According to USCIS, the I-140 may be filed at any time; when based on an approved labor certification, the page records that it expires 180 days from certification and that a petition based on it is received within that validity, with the next-business-day rule when the end of the period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.

The I-140 page also records package rules: required fields in Parts 1, 2, 3, and 8, the signature of the petitioner or authorized signatory, and rejection of unsigned forms. Filing fees are described by the agency as final and non-refundable, regardless of any action taken on the request — a rule distinct from Premium Processing, whose fee is refunded when the adjudicative action does not occur within the period.

Together, these rules define what the service speeds up: the examination of Form I-140, with action within 15 or 45 business days by classification. The other categories are gathered on the page to compare the immigration pathways.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Premium Processing timeframe for EB-1A and for EB-2 NIW?

According to the official USCIS chart, the E11 extraordinary ability classification (EB-1A) sits in the 15-business-day band, and the E21 classification with a national interest waiver (EB-2 NIW) sits in the 45-business-day band, the same as E13, multinational executives and managers.

How much does I-140 Premium Processing cost in 2026?

The DHS final rule published in the Federal Register on January 12, 2026, sets the fee at $2,965 for requests postmarked on or after March 1, 2026 — a 5.72% adjustment over the previous $2,805, calculated from the CPI-U between June 2023 and June 2025.

What happens if USCIS requests additional evidence during Premium Processing?

According to USCIS, the 15- or 45-day period stops and resets, and a new period begins when the agency receives the response to the request for evidence (RFE) or the notice of intent to deny (NOID).

Who can sign and file Form I-907?

The petitioner, or the attorney or representative with a Form G-28 filed on the petitioner’s behalf — and, in a self-petition, the person themselves, when petitioner and beneficiary are the same. The beneficiary may pay the fee, but does not sign or file Form I-907.

What is the current address for mailing Form I-907?

The USCIS alert states that the filing location for mail changed on October 7, 2026, and is determined by the “Where to File” section of the Form I-907 page, based on the reason for filing; forms postmarked on or before November 9, 2026, are accepted at any prior location, within the 30-day grace period.

Disclaimer and compliance notice: Meridian Global Mobility (MGM) provides operational coordination, document organization, and logistical support for Brazil–U.S. mobility projects. MGM is not a law firm and does not provide legal services, legal advice, or representation before government agencies. Any legal services are provided independently by licensed, independent attorneys in the United States. The content of this article is informational and does not constitute consulting or an eligibility determination.

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