USCIS Premium Processing Fees Increase Effective March 1, 2026

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced inflation-adjusted premium processing fee increases effective March 1, 2026. Mandated by federal statute, these biennial adjustments are tied to the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) and affect a broad range of employment-based and nonimmigrant filings. The increases were announced via a USCIS Newsroom Alert on January 9, 2026. For EB-3 applicants, the most directly relevant change involves Form I-140, the employment-based immigrant petition. The premium processing fee for I-140 will rise from $2,805 to $2,965. Other affected forms include Form I-129 (covering H-1B, L-1, O-1, TN, and other classifications, increasing to $2,965) and Form I-765 for OPT and STEM OPT employment authorization (increasing to $1,780). Any premium processing request postmarked on or after March 1, 2026 must include the updated fee. Requests submitted with the old fee will be rejected and returned, potentially causing adjudication delays and disrupting onboarding timelines, work authorization continuity, or international assignments. Applicants who can file before the March 1 deadline may still use current fee amounts. For employers sponsoring EB-3 workers, the increased I-140 cost should be incorporated into immigration budgets immediately. Companies that routinely use premium processing for PERM-based green card cases will face higher per-petition costs, and rising fees may prompt a strategic reassessment of which cases truly require expedited adjudication versus standard processing timelines. Premium processing fees are expected to continue biennial increases tied to inflation. Immigration practitioners will closely monitor whether higher revenue leads to improved USCIS service levels and reduced processing backlogs—an outcome that remains uncertain. Employers and employees should consult legal counsel to ensure accurate fee submissions and develop cost-effective expedited filing strategies going forward.