INS Begins Charging Sharply Higher Fees

The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service on Thursday began charging sharply higher fees for applications and petitions in an effort to make its immigration programs more self-supporting.

In many cases the fees have doubled from previous levels, prompting an outcry from immigration rights groups that the charges are prohibitively expensive for some immigrants. For example, the cost of applying for permanent residency has gone up from $60 to $120. The charge for work authorization has increased from $35 to $60, and the price of Applying for a visa extension for a foreign student jumped from $35 to $70.

Linda E. Mitchell of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles said that while fees for individuals may be affordable, for a family, the costs for even routine procedures, such as applying for permanent residency, could amount to several hundred dollars.