USCIS announces proposed fee increase
USCIS announces proposed fee increase Heading link
On January 3, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to adjust certain immigration filing fees, which was published in the Federal Register the following day.
For University departments that sponsor employees for certain immigration matters, such as H-1B and O-1 employment authorization, as well as sponsorship for permanent residency (I-140 immigrant petitions), the USCIS proposed filing fee adjustments could result in a fee increase related to such cases.
Specifically, the NPRM proposes to increase the base filing fee for the I-129 nonimmigrant petition, H-1B classification from $460 to $780 and the O-1 classification from $460 to $1,055, and the filing fee for I-140 immigrant petitions from $700 to $715. Moreover, USCIS is also proposing a possible new Asylum Program Fee surcharge of $600 to be paid by employers who file either Form I-129 or I-140, in order to cover some of the costs associated with asylum processing of unrelated cases. However, the NPRM has stated that if Congress provides appropriations to fund USCIS asylum processing, then the proposed $600 Asylum Program Fee may be removed or reduced from the final rule.
Additionally, the proposed rule would extend the length of the Premium Processing period from 15 calendar days to 15 business days. Premium Processing is an optional service available to University departments that is reserved for most Form I-129 and Form I-140 filings with USCIS.
A 60-day public comment period began following the publication of the NPRM in the Federal Register and will end on March 6, 2023. Any adjusted immigration filing fees will not change until a final rule goes into effect. For more information and background on the USCIS immigration filing fee adjustment proposal, please refer to the Proposed Fee Rule Frequently Asked Question linked below.
OIS will continue to monitor USCIS proposed rulemaking and will update UIC departments, international students, exchange visitors, and the international community accordingly. As always, if there are any questions or concerns about this announcement, please feel free to contact us at ois@uic.edu or (312) 996-3121.