USCIS just raised immigration fees. See what work permits and asylum now cost
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began enforcing on Tuesday new mandatory fees for certain immigration benefits, as required by the HR-1 Reconciliation Act, passed by Congress earlier this month.
These new fees are in addition to existing USCIS filing fees and cannot be waived — even if the applicant qualifies for a fee waiver under existing Department of Homeland Security regulations.
The changes, published in the Federal Register, apply to individuals filing for asylum, work authorization (EAD), Temporary Protected Status (TPS), and other humanitarian benefits, including Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) status.
Higher fees for key immigration applications
The newly imposed USCIS fees represent a significant increase for some of the most common forms used by immigrants in the U.S., particularly those from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Haiti and other Latin American countries.
These are the main additional mandatory fees required under HR-1:
▪ Asylum application (Form I-589)
Before: $0 - Now: $100
▪ Annual fee for pending asylum cases
Before: Not applicable - Now: $100 per year
(USCIS will issue annual notices to collect this fee from individuals with pending asylum cases.)
▪ Initial work permit (Form I-765)
Before: $410 - Now: $960
(Standard fee + $550 HR-1 surcharge)
▪ Work permit renewal (Form I-765)
Before: $410 - Now: $685
(Standard fee + $275 HR-1 surcharge)
▪ Temporary Protected Status (Form I-821)
Before: $135 (including biometrics) - Now: $635
(Breakdown: $50 base fee + $85 biometrics + $500 HR-1 surcharge)
An additional $30 biometric fee may apply if required.
▪ Humanitarian parole renewal with work permit (Forms I-131 + I-765)
Before: $390 - Now: $665
(Standard fees + $275 HR-1 surcharge)
▪ Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) petition (Form I-360)
Before: $0 - Now: $250
Who must pay the new USCIS fees?
The HR-1-mandated fees apply to a broad range of immigration applicants, including:
▪ Individuals applying for or with pending asylum
▪ Applicants requesting or renewing a work permit (EAD)
▪ Beneficiaries of Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
▪ Foreign nationals renewing humanitarian parole with employment authorization
▪ Youth applicants for Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) status
Federal authorities emphasized that these fees cannot be waived or reduced, even if the base form is eligible for a fee waiver under DHS regulations. Because these charges are imposed by statute through the HR-1 reconciliation package, they are not subject to agency discretion, exemption or appeal.
New limits on work permit validity
In addition to the new fees, HR-1 also imposes changes to the validity period of Employment Authorization Documents for certain categories of immigrants.
“H.R. 1 also changed validity periods for some EAD categories,” USCIS said in an official release.
“For alien parolees, initial employment authorization is valid for a period of no more than one year or for the duration of the alien’s parole, whichever is shorter. For aliens with TPS, initial and renewal employment authorizations are valid for no more than one year or for the duration of the alien’s TPS status, whichever is shorter, ” USCIS stated.
The shortened duration means that many parole and TPS beneficiaries will need to renew their work permits annually, adding financial and administrative burdens.
This story was originally published July 22, 2025 at 4:09 PM.
