U.S.
EMBASSY INCREASES NONIMMIGRANT VISA APPLICATION FEE
The
application processing fee charged for all nonimmigrant visa and
border crossing card applications will increase from $65 to $100,
effective November 1.
Additional
security screening procedures, restrictions on the role of support
staff and further increases in management oversight have added
to the cost of nonimmigrant visa processing, and are the reason
for the fee increase.
The
following is the text of the U.S. State Department notice of October
9 on this increase:
NONIMMIGRANT
VISA APPLICATION FEE INCREASED
Effective
November 1, 2002, the U.S. Department of State is raising the
worldwide nonimmigrant visa fee to $100. Currently $65,
this application processing fee is charged for all nonimmigrant
visa and border crossing card applications. This adjustment
will bring the fee into line with the actual costs of administering
nonimmigrant visas services.
The
State Department has congressional authorization to fund the Department's
Border Security Program with user fees. These fees are adjusted
periodically to reflect the actual cost of the program.
Added security screening procedures, restrictions on the role
of support staff, and further increases in management oversight
have added to the cost of nonimmigrant visa processing.
The Machine?Readable Visa (MRV) fee was introduced in 1994 and
is the program's primary source of revenue.
The
Department is facing a critical revenue shortfall because the
current $65 fee simply does not recover the full cost of service.
In consultation with the White House's Office of Management and
Budget, the Department determined that the shortfall should be
met by an increase in the fee rather than by an appropriation
of U.S. tax revenues. Because of lowered applicant volume
and the budget required to administer the Border Security Program,
a fee of $100 is necessary to recover costs.
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