The Department of State announced a final rule on a set of proposed visa fee increases introduced in 2021 that are meant to help offset the cost of visa processing for consular affairs services required for their administration.  While the rise in the fees was expected, the actual increases were less than originally proposed. 

The final rule will increase fees for F, J and M visas, which are the most common international student visas, as well as other non-immigrant visas.  The fees for these visas will increase from $160 to $185 (not the proposed $245).  For H visas, which are used by international faculty, researchers, and scholars, among other professions, fees will increase from $190 to $205 (not the proposed $310).  

In addition, the final rule keeps the J exchange visitor waiver of two-year residency application fee at $120.  The proposed rule would have increased it to $510, a 325% increase.

The higher education community sent a letter to the State Department last year expressing its concern over the timing of the fee increases as the country was still trying to reemerge from the pandemic and the loss of its international student population.  While the letter expressed an understanding of how increased fees could support consular operations, it pushed for assurances that any additional resources be spent in improving efficiency and visa processing times for international students and scholars.

This issue differs from the recent proposal from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) to increase certain immigration and naturalization benefit fees. The USCIS proposal would affect certain forms and petitions for immigration and naturalization benefit requests. 

NAICU also joined others in the higher education community in sending comments to USCIS reflecting the community’s understanding that while it has been several years since these fees were increased, it has the same concerns that a post-pandemic increase in these fees will harm efforts to continue welcoming back international students who want to study in the U.S.