The Department of State (DOS) has issued a proposed rule that would raise consular service fees for several nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applications, Border Crossing Card (BCC) applications for Mexican citizens, and waivers of the two-year residency requirement for certain J exchange visitors. Specifically, the Department proposes:
- To increase the non-petition-based NIV fee from $160 to $245 per application. Non-petition-based NIVs include a variety of nonimmigrant visas, such as those for business and tourist travel (B1/B2); students and exchange visitors (F, M, and J); crew and transit visas (C and D); representatives of foreign media (I), and other country-specific visa classes, as well as BCCs for applicants age 15 or older who are citizens of and resident in Mexico.
- To increase fees for all petition-based NIVs related to employment in the United States from $190 to $310. Petition-based NIVs include categories for temporary workers and trainees (H); intracompany transferees (L); aliens of extraordinary ability (O); athletes, artists, and entertainers (P); international cultural exchange participants (Q); and religious workers (R).
- To increase the E category NIV fee from $205 to $485.
- To increase the J waiver fee from $120 to $510.
DOS will accept comments on the proposed rule until February 28, 2022.
