Rule Changes Set to Increase Immigration Filing Fees
On August 3, 2020, United States Citizenship & Immigration Service (USCIS) published a final rule that would significantly increase certain immigration filing fees. The rule would have been effective on October 2, 2020. The rule would have also removed certain fee exemptions, changed fee waiver requirements, alters premium processing time limits, and modifies intercountry adoption processing. The rule would have meant that any application, petition, or request postmarked on or after October 2, 2020, must be accompanied by the fees set forth in the final rule. For example, a citizenship application would have increased by $520.00 under the new rule.
California Court Stopped Immigration Fee Hike, Temporarily
However, on September 29, 2020, a federal district court in California stayed the implementation and the effective date of this rule pending the final outcome of that case. What this means is that the increased fees, as well as the form and policy changes related to the USCIS Fee Rule, cannot be implemented by USCIS at this time.
So if you have applications to file with immigration that would have been subject to a fee increase, you can file now at the previous rates.
