On July 4, President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), a large budget reconciliation bill, into law. The Senate and House of Representatives narrowly passed this version of HR 1 on July 1 and July 3, respectively.
The OBBBA makes sweeping changes across the U.S. immigration system on enforcement, work authorization, fees, and access to services like Medicaid and SNAP.
What are immigration fees?
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, an agency within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has historically charged fees to account for the costs of different applications and services provided by the agency. This includes applications for naturalization, green cards, employment-based visas, and employment authorization documents. When biometric services are required, like fingerprinting, fees can be higher.
How does the OBBBA affect immigration fees?
Under Title X – Committee on the Judiciary, Subtitle A — Immigration and Law Enforcement Matters, Part I — Immigration Fees (pages 293-315), the OBBBA adds new fees and dramatically increases existing fees. Most notably, the OBBBA imposes new fees on access to humanitarian protections.
New fees
• A minimum, non-waivable $100 asylum application fee, and an additional $100 fee for each year that a person’s asylum application remains pending.
• A minimum fee of $250 for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status.
• A minimum fee of $5,000 for any person who is apprehended between ports of entry without authorization, with no exceptions for people seeking asylum.
Significantly increased fees
• A minimum, non-waivable fee of $550 for a person’s first application for work authorization based on pending asylum application, parole, or Temporary Protected Status (TPS); a minimum non-waivable fee of $275 for renewal applications.
• A minimum, non-waivable fee of $1,000 for anyone entering the United States under a grant of parole with some exceptions provided for extreme humanitarian situations. Currently, the fee is $630.
• A minimum non-waivable fee of $500 for TPS. Currently, the fee is $50.
• A minimum, non-waivable fee of $250 for any individual issued a non-immigrant visa, which is reimbursable if the individual can prove that they complied with the conditions of the visa and did not attempt to extend their stay.
Significantly increased court processing fees
• A fee of $1,500 for lawful permanent resident application. Currently, the fee is $1,140.
• A fee of $1,050 for an application of waiver of grounds of inadmissibility.
• A fee of $500 for filing a TPS application in immigration court (separate from the $500 filing fee for TPS itself above). • A fee of $900 to appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals or for appeal of a DHS decision. Currently, the fee is $110.
• A fee of $900 to seek to reopen or reconsider a previous immigration judge’s decision, with an exception provided if the motion is based on improper notice.
• A fee of $600 for lawful permanent residents and $1,500 fee for non-lawful permanent residents to apply for cancellation of removal. Currently, the fee is $130.
• A fee of $5,000 if an immigration judge orders deportation when a person does not appear in court.
When do these fees take effect?
These immigration fees are intended to take effect immediately. However, relevant agencies like DHS and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have not yet updated their public-facing guidance, fee schedules, or payment systems.
Impacts of the changes
For the first time in American history, access to humanitarian protection and due process under the legal system will have a price tag which, for many, will be unaffordable. The fees are listed as minimums, meaning that DHS and DOJ could charge more than what is listed in the bill. Further, the OBBBA eliminates waivers for many of these fees, making them mandatory even for people who previously would have been eligible for waivers.
Ultimately, the fee changes in the OBBBA will make humanitarian protection unaffordable for those who need it most.
