Fast processing of some H-1B visas allowed by US

US companies often use the visas to hire graduate-level workers in several specialised fields.

The US government said that it would resume fast processing of H-1B visas requested by institutions of higher education and non-profit and governmental research organizations.
US President Donald Trump had signed an executive order in April in which he called for a review of the H-1B programme. The visa allows foreigners with certain skills to work on a temporary basis in the US.

On April 3, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) suspended "premium processing" of the visas for up to six months. Under the expedited procedure, applicants can be eligible for visa approvals within 15 days, instead of a regular review period that can last several months.

The overall suspension remains in place but USCIS said on Monday in a statement that premium processing would resume for some applications from educational and research-oriented organizations exempt from the cap.

USCIS has said that suspending premium processing was necessary to reduce a backlog of long-pending visa petitions and thus reduce overall H-1B processing times.

US companies often use the visas to hire graduate-level workers in several specialised fields, including information technology, medicine, engineering and mathematics. The visas are heavily used in the tech sector.

OneIndia News