I-129F fee...??? go up ?

[robinknight8 0]

in form guide (by US gov) it said 170$ ... does it go up to 455$ ???!! ?

[YuAndDan 153]

Yes starting July 30, also check out AOS going up to $1010.

This is not a cheap endeavor before July 30, and after, it just gets more expensive.

[Cry_Tuff 0]

Yes starting July 30, also check out AOS going up to $1010.

This is not a cheap endeavor before July 30, and after, it just gets more expensive.

I suppose by raising the fees, they think it will deter people from filing?

[Jamie76 0]

I don' think the believe it will deter people...just like the postal service increasing the cost of stamps...they have a certain budget they have to maintain. I think they have said this increase will speed up the overall process, but I am not sure about that.

[thejoz 0]

It'll speed things up cause less people will be able to afford it, thus less people applying, thus they move faster!

[Lance27 19]

It'll speed things up cause less people will be able to afford it, thus less people applying, thus they move faster!

But seriously I really doubt it. Price of Gas has gone up over the years, yet I dont see less cars on the road.

[RosemarieL 0]

Yes starting July 30, also check out AOS going up to $1010.

This is not a cheap endeavor before July 30, and after, it just gets more expensive.

I suppose by raising the fees, they think it will deter people from filing?

I think the intent is to make it self funding and to improve their computer systems and staffing levels.

[TracyTN 237]

They announced this a while ago.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t=0&start=0

[Geraghty 0]

I've read about this and some of us will be caught in the middle. The increased fees are supposed to speed up the process but that will take some time (a year or two before it actually speeds up). Those of us filing now will not get much benefit of the "Speedy" process but unfortunately will have to pay for it. That's what I've read anyway. Anyone else have any information on this?

[TimsDaisy 0]

One of the good things about the federal government is that they cannot change a rule (ie: raise a fee) with out giving AMPLE public notice, soliciting public comment, and creating LARGE documents explaining their reasons for changing the rule. Whether people bother to read it, that's another story. And no, you can't keep track of everything, I know.

Search around VJ a bit and you'll not only find plenty of discussion of the fee increase, but links to the document explaining WHY fees are increasing.

Here are their main reasons, in brief. Whether you find them valid is your call, but this is their story:

1.) USCIS is entirely self funded. No tax dollars go to USCIS.

2.) You might've heard about "The Backlog" that was sinking applicants in YEARS of unnecessary waiting time. In 2006, the president gave special monies to USCIS to get rid of the backlog. USCIS says it can't keep up current service levels now that the money is gone. So it either raises fees or the backlog comes back.

3.) In the past, backlogs caused USCIS to creat a bunch of stop-gap services (like advanced parole) and more people had to use them because of slow processing times. People started to complain that USCIS was dragging its heels purposely to collect extra fee money from services people wouldn't otherwise need.

4.) The new fees (for AOS especially) include ALL those other piecemeal fees. So you pay once, rather than bit by bit. So some will win and some will lose - those who need the extra services get them, those who don't, will end up paying more. USCIS thinks this new way is better.

So yeah, far from perfect, and I still have questions about all their reasons, but it makes for a better discussion if you know some of the background.

[DakotaK1 1]

Here is the goverment site with the list of all the fees that are going to be more: (Starting from 30th July)

http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments...edule052907.pdf