New Visa Fees
Visa Processing Fees to Change on April 13, 2012
Effective April 13, 2012, the Department of State will adjust visa processing fees. The fees for most nonimmigrant visa applications and Border Crossing Cards will increase, while all immigrant visa processing fees will decrease.
The Department is required to recover, as far as possible, the cost of processing visas through the collection of application fees. For a number of reasons, the current fees no longer cover the actual cost of processing nonimmigrant visas. The nonimmigrant visa fee increase will support the addition and expansion of overseas facilities, as well as additional staffing required to meet increased visa demand.
Although most categories of nonimmigrant visa processing fees will increase, the fee for E visas (treaty-traders and treaty-investors) and K visas (for fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens) will decrease.
Nonimmigrant Visa Processing Fees
| Type of Visa |
Previous Fee |
New Fee |
| Tourist, Business, Transit, Crew Member, Student, Exchange Visitor, and Journalist visas | USD 140 | USD 160 |
| Petition-Based visas (H, L, O, P, Q, and R) | USD 150 | USD 190 |
| Treaty Investor and Trader visas (E) | USD 390 | USD 270 |
| Fiancé(e) visas (K) | USD 350 | USD 240 |
| Border Crossing Cards (age 15 and older) | USD 140 | USD 160 |
| Border Crossing Cards (under age 15) | USD 14 | USD 15 |
Because of a reallocation of costs associated with immigrant visas, all categories of immigrant visa processing fees will decrease.
Immigrant Visa Processing Fees
| Type of Visa | Previous Fee | New Fee |
| Immediate Relative and Family Preference Applications | USD 330 | USD 230 |
| Employment-Based Applications | USD 720 | USD 405 |
| Other Immigrant Visa Applications | USD 305 | USD 220 |
| Diversity Visa Program Fee | USD 440 | USD 330 |
| Determining Returning Resident Status | USD 380 | USD 275 |
Fee information may also be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs website, travel.state.gov.