Immigration Fees Inflate Under 'Big Beautiful Bill': Pay Up!
Published Date: 11/21/2025
Notice
Summary
Starting January 1, 2026, immigration fees under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (HR-1) will go up to keep pace with inflation. If you’re applying for immigration benefits after that date, you’ll need to pay the new fees or your application could be rejected. This change affects anyone filing immigration paperwork with USCIS and helps keep fees fair and current.
Analyzed Economic Effects
7 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 4 costs, 3 mixed.
USCIS fees rise for filers Jan 1, 2026
Starting January 1, 2026, USCIS will require the new HR-1 inflation-adjusted fees for any immigration benefit request postmarked on or after that date. If your application is postmarked on or after January 1, 2026 and you do not include the proper filing fee, USCIS will reject the application.
Initial EAD fees increase by $10
Initial Employment Authorization Document (EAD) fees for applicants filing based on a pending asylum application, parole, or Temporary Protected Status (TPS) increase from $550 to $560 effective January 1, 2026. That is a $10 increase per initial EAD application.
Most EAD renewals rise $5; asylum renewals exempt
Certain EAD renewal or extension fees (parole renewals, TPS renewals, and EADs tied to re-parole) increase from $275 to $280, a $5 rise, effective January 1, 2026. Renewal or extension of employment authorization for asylum applicants remains $275 because HR-1 does not provide for inflationary adjustments for that fee.
TPS application fee increases $10
The Form I-821 fee for first-time Temporary Protected Status (TPS) applicants increases from $500 to $510, a $10 increase, effective January 1, 2026. The notice specifies the $30 biometric services fee is not included in that amount.
Annual pending asylum fee rises $2
The Annual Asylum Fee for each calendar year a pending asylum application remains pending increases from $100 to $102 effective January 1, 2026. The notice explains this fee is adjusted using CPI-U and rounded down to the nearest dollar for this item.
Inflation math: 2.705% CPI-U and rounding rules
USCIS applied the CPI-U change from July 2024 (314.540) to July 2025 (323.048), a 2.705 percent increase, to calculate 2026 adjustments and then rounded most fees down to the next lowest multiple of $10 or to the nearest dollar where the statute requires. That 2.705% calculation is the basis for the small increases shown in the notice.
Parole and I-94 fees will be set later
USCIS says the fee required by HR-1 section 100004 for aliens paroled into the U.S. and the fee under section 100008 for submission of Form I-94 will be adjusted for inflation, but those adjustments will be announced in a subsequent Federal Register notice with implementation dates. Those specific fee amounts and effective dates are not set in this notice.
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Key Dates
Department and Agencies
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