¿Qué es el Procesamiento Prioritario y debo solicitar o actualizar a Procesamiento Prioritario para mi caso de inmigración EB-2, Exención de interés nacional (NIW)? Depende.
Monica Zafra • November 3, 2022
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Pautas
El 29 de marzo de 2022, el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional anunció la expansión del programa de Procesamiento Prioritario de USCIS para aumentar la eficiencia y reducir las cargas del sistema de inmigración legal. USCIS buscará aliviar el gran retraso exacerbado por la pandemia de COVID-19 y expandir el procesamiento prioritario a categorías adicionales.
Estos cambios se implementarán a lo largo del año fiscal 2022 a través de un enfoque por etapas. Para fines de este año fiscal, USCIS ampliará la elegibilidad de Procesamiento Prioritario a varias categorías diferentes, una de las cuales es la categoría del Formulario I-140 para peticiones de trabajadores de inmigración EB-2 de exención de interés nacional (NIW). USCIS también está expandiendo el procesamiento prioritario para otras categorías, como se ve aquí:
Se sabe que USCIS tiene largos tiempos de procesamiento y, como resultado, varios solicitantes han estado esperando actualizaciones de USCIS durante meses más de lo previsto. El Procesamiento Prioritario proporciona un procesamiento acelerado para las peticiones enviadas a USCIS. A través de este proceso, USCIS garantiza una decisión dentro de un número reducido de días a las personas que usan el servicio o USCIS reembolsará la tarifa de Procesamiento Prioritario y seguirá con su procesamiento acelerado. Esta es la fecha límite antes de la cual USCIS debe emitir un aviso de aprobación, una solicitud de evidencia, un aviso de intención de denegación o un aviso de denegación. Al recibir una solicitud de evidencia, un solicitante puede presentar documentos para respaldar su caso.
Tarifas y tiempo de procesamiento
El plazo de Procesamiento Prioritario estimado para los casos I-140 EB-2 NIW será de 45 días calendario con una tarifa de $2,500. El tiempo de procesamiento regular actual para una decisión para casos I-140 EB-2 NIW varía de 8 meses a más de 1 año.
¿Qué significa esto para mí? ¿Debería solicitar o actualizar el Procesamiento Prioritario para mi caso?
Procesamiento Prioritario es una excelente opción para el solicitante adecuado. Los clientes a menudo solicitan el Procesamiento Prioritario para su caso debido al tiempo de respuesta acelerado, lo que les permite tener una decisión sobre su petición en un tiempo mucho más rápido que el procesamiento regular. Es importante consultar con su abogado para analizar si es un buen candidato para actualizar. Si su caso está cerca de ser adjudicado, puede que no sea una opción ideal, pero si todavía está lejos de una decisión de USCIS, puede ser una opción viable para usted. Hasta que se tome la decisión final, USCIS solo tendrá un Procesamiento Prioritario para los casos actualmente elegibles, que no son EB-2 ni NIW en este momento. Sin embargo, para prepararse para esta próxima elegibilidad, los ciudadanos extranjeros pueden comunicarse con su administrador de casos/abogado de Santos Lloyd para analizar si su caso es un buen candidato para solicitar o actualizar al Procesamiento Prioritario cuando sea elegible.
Si está interesado en solicitar o actualizar al Procesamiento Prioritario para su caso, pero no está seguro de si su caso es elegible, comuníquese con nuestra oficina y hable con uno de nuestros experimentados abogados.
This blog is not intended to be legal advice and nothing here should be construed as establishing an attorney client relationship. Please schedule a consultation with an immigration attorney before acting on any information read here.
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Monica Zafra
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