Immigration Filing Fee Increase on October 2, 2020

Aug 09, 2020 News

ImmigrationINFO
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced an astronomical 80% fee increase on cost to become a U.S. citizen, obtain a green card and other immigration services. This filing fee increase could make the legal immigration system inaccessible to millions of people. The increased filing fees will become effective on October 2, 2020. View a list of forms and fees using this link: https://tinyurl.com/y2kr6jcq
Adjustment of Status
When filing for adjustment of status in the U.S. or a green card based on marriage to a U.S. citizen, the total filing fees are $1,760. The fee increase will charge an extra $1,150 bringing the new cost of obtaining a green card to $2,910.
Naturalization/Citizenship
USCIS increased the total cost of a naturalization application or becoming a U.S. citizen by over 80%. Online naturalization applications will now run $1,170, up from the previous price of $640. USCIS says the new fee will cover the full cost to process the application as well as some overhead costs. Say good-bye to fee waivers as USCIS is also eliminating almost all fee waivers that it previously provided for low-income immigrants seeking citizenship.
H-1B
Filing fees for employers petitioning for an H-1B worker will increase by 70%. The cost to petition for one worker will total over $3,000. The agency is also increasing the time it takes to process H-1B visas. Employers who pay for “premium processing” of their petitions will now have to wait almost twice as long to receive a decision.
Fee for Asylum Applications
USCIS will now charge a $50 fee to apply for asylum. This will be the first time the United States has charged a fee since WWII. This makes the United States only the fourth country in the world to charge a fee for asylum applications. Iran, Fiji, and Australia also charge a fee. USCIS also refused to provide any fee waivers for this expense.
USCIS’ History of Financial Mismanagement
USCIS has furlough two-thirds of its staff and has enormous budget shortfalls. The agency claims that the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent office closures wiped out most of the fee-based agency’s revenue. But USCIS has long suffered from fiscal mismanagement. The fee hikes represent the culmination of years’ worth of financial recklessness and poor policy changes. These issues have only been exacerbated by the pandemic. The published rule, however, says the agency did not take COVID-19 into consideration when determining the new fees.
(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)
NOTE: Immigration Law Offices of Gail S. Seeram offers a free consultation to discuss related fees for a process and explain options. Our office will NOT tell you how to complete the legal process on your own. If you seek legal representation, then legal fees will be due to our office.
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