USCIS Reminders: Increased Filing Fees, Additional Asylum Program Fee, and Extended Premium Processing Times

Now that these fees are in effect, we want to highlight important details regarding the Final Rule and provide a chart with certain increased filing fees.

• NEW ONE-TIME ASYLUM PROGRAM FEE:
  • USCIS created a new fee to support the US asylum system and enhance efficiency. Employers must now pay a one-time Asylum Program fee of $600 for each Form I-129 and I-140 they file.
  • The same employers (under 25 employees) will be required to pay an Asylum Program fee but at a discount of $300.
  • Nonprofits will be exempt from paying the Asylum Program Fee.
     
• INCREASED USCIS FILING FEES NOW IN EFFECT:
  • The fees listed below do not include the American Workforce Improvement Act of 1988 (ACWIA) fee of $1500/$750 required of certain H-1B employers and the $500 Fraud Prevention and Detection fee required for certain H and L filings. These fee amounts and requirements are unchanged and detailed here.

• PREMIUM PROCESSING SERVICE (FORM I-907) TIMEFRAME EXTENSION AND FEE INCREASE:
  • Timeframe Extension: the premium processing timeframe for I-129 and certain I-140 filings has been extended from 15 calendar days to 15 business days.
  • Similarly, the timeframes for processing eligible I-765 and I-539 cases have been extended to 30 business days and 45 business days for eligible I-140 multinational manager and EB-2 National Interest Waiver cases.
  • Fee Increase: This fee has increased from $2,500 to $2,805 for I-129 and I-140 forms. Other premium fee increases are noted in the chart below:

More information as to the new fee schedule may be found here, with access to all current USCIS filing fees here.

If you have any questions regarding the updated fees or timeframes for submitting, please reach out to Melanie C. Walker or any member of Baker Donelson's Immigration Team.

Tony Garofalo, a paralegal at Baker Donelson, contributed to this article and is not admitted to the practice of law.