On May 29, 2007, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced a new fee schedule for applications and petitions.  Applications or petitions postmarked or filed on or after July 30, 2007 will require the new fees.  

While most filing fees have increased, a few are eligible for lower or no fees.  Applicants for permanent residency under asylum, victims of human trafficking, special immigrant juveniles, and Violence Against Women Act petitioners may request they not pay a fee.  US military personnel applying for naturalization to US citizenship automatically do not pay a fee. Children applying for lawful permanent residency along with a parent will see a 25% lower filing fee. 

USCIS claims it plans to use the funds to provide service improvements and plans to reduce processing times from six to four months for four key applications which make up 1/3 of its workload; (1) Form I-90, Application to Renew or Replace a Permanent Resident Card; (2) Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; (3) Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker; (4) Form N-400, Application for Naturalization.  Time will tell whether this occurs.  The final rule and list of fees are available on USCIS’ web site at www.uscis.gov.

Form	Description	Old Fee	New Fee
I-90	Application to Renew or Replace a Permanent Resident Card	$190	$290
I-129	Petition For Non-Immigrant Worker	$190	$320
I-130	Relative Petition	$190	$355
I-140	Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker	$195	$475
I-485	Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (With Work and Travel Authorization)	$675	$930
I-751	Remove Conditions on Permanent Residence	$205	$465
I-765	Employment Authorization	$180	$340
N-400	Application for Naturalization	$330	$595
Biometric	Fingerprinting	$70	$80