The United States will require international visitors to pay a new “visa integrity fees” of at least $ 250, added to the existing visa request costs, according to a recently promulgated bill of the Trump administration’s domestic policy.
The costs will apply to all visitors required to obtain non-immigrant visas to enter the United States. This includes many leisure and business travelers, international students and other temporary visitors. During the year 2024, the United States issued nearly 11 million non-immigrant visas, according to figures from the State Department.
Tourists and business travelers who are part of the visa renunciation program, including Australia and many European countries, are not required to obtain visas for stays of 90 days or less.
Payment will be required when the visas are issued and there will be no derogation from costs. Travelers who respect their visa conditions can reimburse their costs after the end of the trip, depending on the layout.
Immigration lawyer Steven A. Brown, partner of the Reddy Neumann Brown PC, based in Houston, qualified the “refundable security deposit” costs, in a recent article on the new policy. The mechanism to obtain a refund is not yet clear, said Brown.
“Regarding the purpose of the costs, it is difficult to say,” said Brown in an email at CNN. “Generally, immigration costs must cover the costs of judgment or emission”, but it noted that the reimbursement provision could mean reimburse all the costs won. “In a perfect world, there would be no overvaluation or visa violations.”
The Ministry of Internal Security, the agency establishing new costs, has not yet offered details on the reimbursement process or any other aspect of the deployment of policy.
“Visa integrity costs require cross coordination before implementation,” said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Internal Security in a press release at CNN.
A spokesperson for the State Department said that the costs had been established “to support the priorities of the administration of strengthening immigration, deterrent visas and border security financing”.
The costs which are not reimbursed will be “filed in the General Treasury Fund”, according to the bill.
The initial costs, for the financial year 2025, are described as the highest of $ 250 or “an amount such that the Secretary of Internal Security can establish, by rule”.
Brown suggested that the rule is likely to be implemented through a regulatory process involving its publication in the Federal Register.
The costs are subject to annual adjustments for inflation.
The spokesperson for the State Department said that the details linked to the change, implemented by the DHS, will be published on the visa page of the State Department.
The US Travel Association, a national non-profit organization aimed at increasing travel to and in the United States, has congratulated other parts of the domestic policy bill which would invest in the modernization of customs and air control, but called the new visa costs “a giant leap”.
“These costs, which will cost at least $ 250 and amount to existing visa costs, adds an unnecessary financial obstacle to international visitors,” said Erik Hansen, Vice-President Director of Government Relations for the Association, in a statement.
According to the calculation of US Travel, the costs would increase the “initial costs” of the visit of the United States by 144%. “Even if it is technically refundable, the additional complexity and cost discourage visitors,” said Hansen.
