New BBBA Immigration Fees: What You Need to Know
Short answer: The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA, H.R. 1) created dozens of new, largely non-waivable immigration fees that took effect starting in August 2025 and rise every year for inflation. As of the FY 2026 adjustments, headline amounts include a $100 asylum application fee, a $102 annual asylum fee, a $560 work-permit fee, and a $1,020 parole fee.
[Updated July 2026] This post is our running fee hub and now reflects the FY 2026 inflation-adjusted amounts: USCIS-collected fees effective January 1, 2026; DHS/CBP fees (parole, I-94, ESTA, EVUS) effective January 1, 2026; immigration-court and Board of Immigration Appeals (EOIR) fees effective February 1, 2026; and enforcement fees effective December 1, 2025. It also clarifies that the $250 Visa Integrity Fee is still not being collected as of July 2026, pending cross-agency guidance. The fee table below carries both the original (FY 2025) statutory minimums and the current FY 2026 amounts.
On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed into law the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA), also known as H.R. 1 and sometimes called the “Big Beautiful Bill Act” (BBBA). This budget reconciliation law made sweeping changes to the immigration system, most consequentially a new schedule of fees across a wide range of applications. If you are an applicant, petitioner, or practitioner, it is essential to understand what these fees cost, when they took effect, how they rise each year, and whether any waiver is available.
What's New?
The OBBBA created a set of new fees for many immigration filings. These are statutory minimum fees, and by law they increase every fiscal year for inflation. In most cases the statute specifies that these fees are not waivable—a sharp departure from the long-standing rule that many USCIS fees can be waived for applicants who cannot afford them. Some of these fees sit on top of a pre-existing filing fee, so the total an applicant pays can be considerably higher than the OBBBA amount alone (this is especially true for immigration-court filings, discussed below).
The fees did not all switch on at once. Agencies phased them in as they built payment systems and issued guidance. On July 22, 2025, USCIS published a Federal Register notice implementing the first wave—the asylum, employment-authorization, and TPS fees—and began requiring them for applications postmarked on or after August 21, 2025. Immigration-court (EOIR) fees, DHS/CBP travel fees, and enforcement fees followed on their own schedules, and every one of them has since been adjusted upward for FY 2026.
The FY 2026 Inflation Adjustments
The OBBBA directs each agency to raise its fees annually based on the change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U). For FY 2026, the CPI-U rose about 2.70% from July 2024 to July 2025, so most fees increased by $5, $10, or $20 once rounded (the statute rounds most fees down to the next lowest multiple of $10; the annual asylum fee is rounded down to the nearest dollar, which is why it lands at an odd $102). A few fees did not move because the rounded figure equaled the prior amount.
The adjusted amounts took effect on staggered dates: USCIS fees for applications postmarked on or after January 1, 2026; DHS/CBP fees (parole, I-94, ESTA, EVUS) on January 1, 2026; enforcement fees on December 1, 2025; and EOIR immigration-court and Board of Immigration Appeals fees for filings postmarked on or after February 1, 2026. Filing without the correct fee results in rejection.
The Annual Asylum Fee
A particularly consequential change is the Annual Asylum Fee. This fee—$100 for FY 2025 and $102 for FY 2026—is charged for each year an asylum application remains pending before an agency, court, or other entity with jurisdiction. It comes due on each anniversary that a case has been pending for 365 days, and the agency handling the case notifies the applicant individually of the amount owed, how to pay, and the consequences of non-payment. There are no country-specific exemptions; the fee applies the same way regardless of nationality. USCIS codified this fee, and the consequences of not paying it, in an interim final rule effective May 29, 2026.
The $250 Visa Integrity Fee — Still Not Collected
The OBBBA also created a $250 Visa Integrity Fee (section 100007 of H.R. 1) to be charged to most nonimmigrant visa applicants at the time a visa is issued. Despite the widespread reporting, this fee is not yet being collected as of July 2026. In its July 22, 2025 notice, DHS explained that the Visa Integrity Fee “requires cross-agency coordination before implementing” and “will be implemented in a future publication.” The Department of State has not yet issued guidance to consular posts to begin collecting it. Until an official implementation notice appears, no consular officer should be assessing this fee—treat any claim otherwise with skepticism, and watch travel.state.gov for the announcement.
The Fee Table (FY 2025 vs. FY 2026)
Below are the OBBBA statutory minimum fees under Pub. L. 119-21, showing both the original FY 2025 amount and the current FY 2026 inflation-adjusted amount. Where a filing also carries a pre-existing base fee—most notably immigration-court filings—the note in the far column shows the total a person actually pays.
New Immigration Fees Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (FY 2026)
Fee Type | FY 2025 Minimum | FY 2026 Minimum | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
USCIS — Asylum, Work Authorization & Status (eff. Jan 1, 2026) | |||
Asylum application (Form I-589) | $100 | $100 | Unchanged after rounding |
Annual fee for pending asylum application | $100 | $102 | Charged each year case is pending |
Initial EAD — asylum applicants | $550 | $560 | Work-permit fee |
Renewal/extension EAD — asylum applicants | $275 | $275 | No inflation adjustment by statute |
Initial EAD — parolees (1 year) | $550 | $560 | Work-permit fee |
Renewal/reparole/extension EAD — parolees | $275 | $280 | Work-permit fee |
Initial EAD — TPS applicants (1 year) | $550 | $560 | Work-permit fee |
Renewal/extension EAD — TPS holders | $275 | $280 | Work-permit fee |
TPS application (Form I-821) | $500 | $510 | Plus biometric services fee |
Special Immigrant Juvenile petition (Form I-360) | $250 | $250 | Unchanged after rounding |
DHS / CBP — Parole & Travel (eff. Jan 1, 2026) | |||
Parole into the United States | $1,000 | $1,020 | Charged on each grant of parole |
Form I-94 (HR-1 fee) | $24 | $24 | Total at land border POE is $30 |
ESTA (Visa Waiver Program) | $40 | $40.27 | HR-1 portion of ESTA charge |
EVUS (Chinese B-1/B-2 visa holders) | $30 | $30.75 | Enrollment fee |
Visa Integrity Fee (nonimmigrant visa issuance) | $250 | Not yet collected | Awaiting cross-agency implementation |
Enforcement (eff. Dec 1, 2025) | |||
Alien ordered removed in absentia and later arrested | $5,000 | $5,130 | HR-1 sec. 100016 |
Inadmissible individuals arrested between ports of entry | $5,000 | $5,130 | HR-1 sec. 100016 |
Immigration Court & BIA (EOIR) (eff. Feb 1, 2026) | OBBBA fee / total EOIR fee | ||
Adjustment of status (Form I-485) | $1,500 | $1,540 | Total $2,980 |
Asylum application in court (Form I-589) | $100 | $100 | Total $100 |
Annual asylum fee in court | $100 | $102 | Total $102 |
Cancellation of removal — certain LPRs (EOIR-42A) | $600 | $610 | Total $710 |
Cancellation/adjustment — certain nonperm. residents (EOIR-42B) | $1,500 | $1,540 | Total $1,640 |
Suspension of deportation (EOIR-40) | $600 | $610 | Total $710 |
Waiver of grounds of inadmissibility (Form I-601) | $1,050 | $1,070 | Total $2,120 |
Appeal of IJ decision to BIA (EOIR-26) | $900 | $920 | Total $1,030; bond appeals free |
Appeal of DHS officer decision to BIA (EOIR-29) | $900 | $920 | Total $1,030 |
Practitioner disciplinary appeal (EOIR-45) | $1,325 | $1,355 | Total $2,030 |
Motion to reopen/reconsider an IJ decision | $900 | $920 | Total $1,065; in-absentia motions exempt |
Motion to reopen/reconsider a BIA decision | $900 | $920 | Total $1,030 |
“EAD” means Employment Authorization Document—a work permit. “Total EOIR fee” reflects the OBBBA fee plus any pre-existing base filing fee for that form. Amounts are minimums set by statute and are adjusted upward each fiscal year; always confirm the current figure on the official USCIS, CBP, or EOIR fee pages before filing.
Can These Fees Be Waived?
In most cases, no. The OBBBA generally specifies that its fees are not waivable, even where the underlying application fee historically could be waived for applicants who could not afford it. This is one of the most significant practical effects of the law: a low-income asylum seeker or TPS applicant who once qualified for a fee waiver may now owe the full statutory amount. Do not assume a waiver is available, and do not rely on secondhand summaries—check the controlling Federal Register notice or agency guidance for the specific fee at issue.
One live wrinkle worth knowing: implementation of the immigration-court fees drew litigation. A federal court in Maryland temporarily stayed EOIR’s original fee policy memorandum in late 2025, but that order did not touch the fee-imposing provisions of the statute itself. EOIR subsequently rescinded that memo and set the current fees by Federal Register notice, effective February 1, 2026. In other words, the court fees are in effect now, and the legal wrangling was about the mechanism, not the underlying obligation.
What Should You Do?
- Confirm the current amount before you file. Because these fees rise every fiscal year, the number you saw last year may be stale. File paper applications well in advance so a rejection and refiling do not blow a deadline.
- Include the exact fee. A filing postmarked on or after the effective date without the correct fee—or an applicable fee-waiver request where one is actually permitted—will be rejected.
- Budget for the total, not just the OBBBA fee. For immigration-court filings especially, the OBBBA fee sits on top of a base fee, and work permits carry their own charges.
- Do not assume a waiver. Most of these fees are non-waivable by statute, even when the underlying application fee still is.
- Watch for the Visa Integrity Fee rollout. It is not being collected yet; when it is, it will be $250 (adjusted for inflation) at visa issuance.
The OBBBA marks a substantial and recurring increase in the cost of navigating the U.S. immigration system, and the annual inflation adjustments mean these numbers will keep climbing. Stay informed, plan ahead, and consult a qualified immigration attorney about how the current fees apply to your specific situation.
About the Author
Loren Locke is the Managing Attorney of Locke Immigration Law and a former U.S. Foreign Service Officer who adjudicated approximately 12,000 visa applications at the U.S. Consulate in Mexico. She holds a J.D. from William & Mary Law School and a B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Richmond. Loren is regularly quoted on immigration policy by major publications including Newsweek, Condé Nast Traveler, and The Daily Mail, and specializes in EB-1A extraordinary ability petitions, O-1 visas, and National Interest Waivers.
Follow Loren on LinkedIn | Watch on YouTube | Book a consultation | hello@lockeimmigration.com
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