If you are planning to work in the United States of America on an H-1B visa, you might have to revise your travel budget and check your expenses because of the latest revision of visa fees. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS) have increased the premium processing fee for H-1B visas by 12 percent.
The revision comes for Form I-129, which is used by non-immigrant workers on H-1B or L1 visa. The revised fee will now cost applicants $2,805. This increase needs to be factored in by sponsoring employers in their immigration budget.
Premium subscription is used by applicants to get their visa approvals in a shorter timeframe than what it usually takes. Currently the H-1B visa processing takes about 15 days.
The reason behind the increase in the fees is cited as the inflation between 2021 and 2023. The USCIS plans to revise visa fees every two years, factoring in the inflation in that period. The premium processing charges for other forms like I-539 and I-765 have also increased under this revision.
With an already tough economy struggling from inflation and low employment, foreign trips either for work or study are getting more and more dearer these days.
