US Visa Fees Raised..!? A staggering 203% rate hike..!?
The US has hiked fees for various types of visas, including H-1B, L-1, and EB-5... Which visa has received a hike? The US has dramatically increased H-1B and other visa fees. Accordingly, the application fee for an H-1B visa or Form I-129 has been increased. These new rates will be effective from april 1. The current visa fee of USD 460 will be increased to USD 780. The 69.5 percent hike from the current fare will be burdensome for many. The visa fee hike, which will bring significant revenue to the US government, will come into effect on april 1. Not only this fee increase but the registration fee for an H-1B visa will be increased from US$10 to US$215 from next year. Similarly, the fee for L-1 visas, a non-immigrant visa, will rise from US$460 to US$1,385. It is worth noting that the 201 percent increase in fees is a visa designed for intra-corporate transfers. The increase in visa fees, which allow multinational companies to temporarily transfer some employees from their foreign offices to work in the United States, will burden companies and affect the process of transferring employees from abroad to the United States.
The fee for investor visas or EB-5 visas has been increased from USD 3,675 to USD 11,160. This is an increase of 203 percent. The US has significantly raised fees for various types of (non-immigrant) visas, including H-1B, L-1, and EB-5. It is noteworthy that the majority of applicants for these visas are Indians. So this tariff hike has come as a shock to Indians.
It is said that the fees currently charged are insufficient to cover administrative costs, and thus visa fees are being raised to offset the costs incurred by the US Citizenship and Immigration services (USCIS). The H1B visa, which temporarily allows foreign nationals to work in the United States, is issued only to skilled professionals in a specific field.
India is the leading country in the world in the use of US H1B visas. About 10 percent of these visas issued by the US government are given to Indians. The US Embassy in india has processed more visa applications in 2023 than it has issued in all years.
The visa fee hike will affect India?
In 2023, the US Embassy and Consulates in india have issued 1.4 million US visas. The fact that visa applications for visiting the US in india increased by 60% last year compared to 2022 is enough evidence that these US visa fee hikes will affect Indians.