F-1 Visa For Students: US to Fast-Track Processing of Work Permits; How to File F-1 Online

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services announced premium processing of employment authorisation applications for certain categories on international students. The move is likely to benefit a large number of Indian students on F-1 visas seeking temporary work directly related to their major area of study. It includes expansion of premium processing for certain F-1 students seeking Optional Practical Training (OPT) and F-1 students seeking science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) OPT extensions who have a pending Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, and wish to request a premium processing upgrade.

“The availability of premium processing for certain F-1 students, in addition to the ease of online filing, will streamline the immigration experience for a great many international students,” said USCIS Director Ur M Jaddou.

The new online-filing procedures for Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, is now available to F-1 students who are seeking employment authorisation in the above categories, PTI reported.

These new measures will help F-1 students obtain employment authorisation more quickly.

In FY22, the USCIS accepted more than 1.8 million online applications, petitions and requests — a 53 percent increase from the 1.2 million online filings in FY21.

Premium Processing

The expansion of premium processing for certain F-1 students will be done in phases. To avail the benefit, students will have to adhere to the below-listed dates:

Form I-907 requests (online and offline) will be accepted from March 6 for students who already have a pending Form I-765 under these categories: Pre-Completion OPT (c)(3)(A); Post-Completion OPT (c)(3)(B); and 24-month extension of OPT (c)(3)(C) for STEM students.

Form I-907 requests (online and offline) will be accepted from April 3 for F-1 students in the above categories when filed together with Form I-765.

USCIS will reject premium processing requests for a pending Form I-765 before March 6, and premium processing requests for an initial or concurrently filed Form I-765 received before April 3.

How to File for F-1 Online

Applicants must create a free USCIS account to submit forms, pay fees and track status. It also provides a secure inbox to communicate and respond to requests for evidence online.

Applicants, who have already filed paper Form I-765 and wish to request premium processing for Form I-907 can refer to the USCIS account access notice for details to link their paper-filed cases to their online accounts. You must complete the link to file online.

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