USCIS proposes immigration, naturalization fees adjustment

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is considering a proposed fee rule adjusting certain immigration and naturalization benefit request fees.

“In addition to improving customer service operations and managing the incoming workload, USCIS must continue to fulfill our growing humanitarian mission, upholding fairness, integrity, and respect for all we serve,” USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou said. “This proposed rule allows USCIS to more fully recover operating costs for the first time in six years and will support the Administration’s effort to rebuild the legal immigration system.”

The agency published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). The proposal stems from a comprehensive USCIS fee review determining the agency’s current fees, unchanged since 2016, fall short of recovering the full cost of agency operations.

The proposed action would yield a modest increase in the fee for certain naturalization applications, per authorities, and preserve existing fee waiver eligibility for low-income and vulnerable populations while adding new fee exemptions for certain humanitarian programs.

According to the USCIS, the 60-day public comment period would begin following the publication of the NPRM in the Federal Register, and fees will not change until the final rule goes into effect, after the public has had the opportunity to comment and USCIS finalizes the fee schedule in response to comments.

USCIS is slated to host a public engagement session on the proposed fee rule on Jan. 11, 2023.