USCIS to Increase its Filing Fees
USCIS has updated its filing fees, which will go into effect on April 1, 2024. Any benefit request postmarked on or after 4/1/24 must be accompanied by the new fees established by USCIS.
The new fees affect a wide variety of immigration benefits, including family-based, employment-based, and humanitarian cases. Many of the petitions that our office handles will be affected by the new fees.
The new fees do not affect H-1B registration fees for FY2025
The new fees will be in effect for the start date for filing FY2025 H-1B lottery petitions. However, given the publication timeline for the fee increase and the timing of the H-1B registration period, which will begin on March 6, 2024, USCIS has confirmed that implementation of the H-1B lottery registration fee increase will not take place in time for this registration period and will remain at $10 for the FY2025 lottery.
The initial registration period for the FY 2025 H-1B cap will open at noon EST on March 6, 2024, and run through noon EST on March 22, 2024. During this period, prospective petitioners must use a USCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated registration fee for each beneficiary.
USCIS has published FAQs on the adjusted fees, which can be found here.
Key Takeaways
Key components of the final regulation are as follows:
The new Asylum Program Fee ($600) will be added to filings of I-129 and I-140 petitions. USCIS states that it will help fund the asylum program due to the increase in asylum adjudications in the past few years. This fee will be assessed based on the size and type of petitioning employer.
Similarly, the Final Rule establishes a tiered filing fee for Form I-129 dependent on the size and type of employer.
Small businesses with 25 or less full-time equivalent (FTE) employees will continue to pay the current $460 filing fee and half of the Asylum Program fee ($300).
Nonprofit organizations will continue to pay the current $460 filing fee and are not subject to the Asylum Program Fee.
Under the Final Rule, forms filed online may be eligible for a discount of $50. This should include the Form I-129 for FY2025 H-1Bpetitions, as USCIS
recently announced that the Form I-129 for H-1B petitions will be available for online filing this cap season.
Summary of the new fees
The new fee table can be found here.
A table of the new fees with the asylum program fee is here.
Changes to I-485 Filings
Previously, the fee for the Form I-1485 included the cost of ancillary benefit applications for employment authorization (Form I-765) and advance parole (Form I-131), but these fees are now being charged separately because USCIS stated that not all applicants need or want these ancillary benefits. However, there will be a reduction in the cost of a Form I-765 filed concurrently with or based on a pending adjustment of status by 50 percent. Finally, the Final Rule provides a reduced fee for certain forms that are filed online, including the Form I-765. However, the online filing reduced fee is not applicable to the reduced fee form I-765.
Per the fees noted in the below chart, if an applicant who is over 14 years of age files an adjustment of status application on or after April 1, 2024 and also applies for work authorization and advance parole the new total cost will be $2,330 an increase from $1,225.
