For the first time in more than seven years, the cost of some U.S. immigration and naturalization requests increased starting on Monday.
The new fees affect benefits related to employment-based visas, work authorizations, applications to register as a permanent resident, and those to apply for naturalization.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services shared details on the new fees in January. They apply to benefit requests postmarked on or after April 1.
“For the first time in over seven years, USCIS is updating our fees to better meet the needs of our agency, enabling us to provide more timely decisions to those we serve,” USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou said in a written statement in January.
Some fees, including those to replace existing permanent resident cards, have slightly decreased with the changes.
The USCIS said it will use the new revenues to “improve customer experience and stem backlog growth."
The rule comes after USCIS conducted a year-long review that included more than 5,400 public comments.
As a result of the input, the agency said the new fees are the same or lower than originally published in a proposed rule change first published in January 2023.
Also, there is a standard $50 discount for applications submitted online, and a reduction in the fees for Employment Authorization Document applications when you are adjusting your status or if you are under the age of 14 in certain situations.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
While this is the first full filing fee adjustment since December 2016, USCIS has announced increases for some processing fees more recently.
In December, the agency announced that it would increase the filing fee for Form I-907 to Request Premium Processing, to adjust for inflation.
The adjustment, which went into effect in February, increases certain premium processing fees from $1,500 to $1,685, $1,750 to $1,965, and $2,500 to $2,805.
What are the new fees of the most popular forms?
| Immigration Benefit Request | Current Fee | Final Fee | Current to Final Difference |
| I-90 Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (online filing) | $455 | $415 | -$40 |
| I-90 Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (online filing, with biometric services) | $540 | $415 | -$125 |
| I-102 Application for Replacement/Initial Nonimmigrant Arrival-Departure Document | $445 | $560 | $115 |
| I-129 H1 Petition for a Nonimmigrant worker - Classifications | $460 | $460 | $0 |
| I-129 H2A Petition for a Nonimmigrant worker - Named Beneficiaries | $460 | $1,090 | $630 |
| I-129 H2A Petition for a Nonimmigrant worker - Unnamed Beneficiaries | $460 | $530 | $70 |
| I-129 Petition for L Nonimmigrant worker | $460 | $1,385 | $925 |
| I-129 Petition for O Nonimmigrant worker | $460 | $1,055 | $595 |
| I-129CW CNMI-Only Nonimmigrant Transitional Worker and I-129 Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker: E, H-3, P, Q, R, or TN Classifications (with biometric services) | $545 | $1,015 | $470 |
| I-129CW CNMI-Only Nonimmigrant Transitional Worker and I-129 Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker: E, H-3, P, Q, R, or TN Classifications | $460 | $1,015 | $555 |
| I-129F Petition for Alien Fiancé(e) | $535 | $675 | $140 |
| I-130 Petition for Alien Fiancé(e) (online filing) | $535 | $625 | $90 |
| I-130 Petition for Alien Fiancé(e) (paper filing) | $535 | $675 | $140 |
| I-131 Application for Travel Document | $575 | $630 | $55 |
| I-131 Application for Travel Document (with biometric services) | $660 | $630 | -$30 |
| I-140 petición para trabajadores extranjeros | $700 | $715 | $15 |
| I-290B Notice of Appeal or Motion | $675 | $800 | $125 |
| I-485 Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (with biometric services) | $1,225 | $1,440 | $215 |
| I-539 Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status (online filing, with biometric services) | $455 | $420 | -$35 |
| I-765 Application for Employment Authorization (online filing, with biometric services) | $495 | $470 | -$25 |
| N-400 Application for Naturalization (online filing) | $640 | $710 | $70 |
| N-400 Application for Naturalization (online filing, with biometric services) | $725 | $710 | -$15 |
| N-600 Application for Certificate of Citizenship (online filing) | $1,170 | $1,335 | $165 |
| H1B Registration Process Fee | $220 | $235 | $15 |
| Biometric Services | $85 | $30 | -$55 |
