U.S. to increase H1-B visa fees by 2000%

Highlights: USCIS proposed significant increases in the visa fees

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• USCIS has implemented?new rules and made changes to the visa fee across various immigration processes.
• The changes have been made for the H1-B visa, L visa, EB-5 investor, Employment authorization, and citizenship.
• The H-1B visa fee may see a significant hike of 2000%, and petition fee for H-1B visa application by 70%.

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USCIS proposes increase in the visa fees for applicants

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services has proposed a substantial fee hike across various immigration processes.

USCIS acknowledges the need for a comprehensive fee review due to the financial difficulties which have been made worse due to pandemic. The fee rule which is proposed aims to address persistent shortfall in recovering the total cost of agency operations which has existed since 2016. The rule is anticipated to be finalized in December or January of 2024, with an effective date 60 – 90 days later.

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Details of the changes in the increase of visa fees

If implemented, the proposed fee increases will have significant implications for various immigration categories. The fee for H-1B E-registration may witness 2000% of surge, which is a rise from $10 to $215.

Additionally, the petition fee for an H-1B visa application could be increased by 70% from $460 to $780. USCIS explains that these increases are necessary in order to align with the agency capacity with workloads and preventing future backlogs.

The cost for applying to citizenship (naturalization) will go from $640 to $760 which is a 19% in increase.

The most hikes are for EB-5 investors taking part in the investment linked green card programme. Additionally, the proposed increased include a 204% hike for I-526 petitions rising to $11,160, while a potential 148% hike could be seen for I-829 petitions rising to $9,525 to eradicate conditions on permanent resident status.

The suggested free hikes, initially proposed in January 2023, may be implemented in the early 2024;

Legal professionals acknowledge the urgent need for funding but expect the overall fee structure to see implementation.

Immigration attorneys are recommending strategic investments in the EB-5 program ahead of anticipated fee increases. In order to lessen the impact of increased fees, those applying for US citizenship or a green card are also urged to look into early filing options.

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