- The US President
Donald Trump 's administration proposed over 80% hike in the Citizenship application fee. - There are roughly 9 million immigrants, who are eligible to apply for
US citizenship . - The proposal is now out for public review until December 16.
The Trump's administration proposed over 80% hike in the Citizenship application fee, saying that the "current fees do not recover the full costs of providing adjudication and naturalization services," according to IANS.
This comes after the US government hiked the application fee of H1-B work visas by $10. "This effort will help implement a more efficient and effective H1-B cap selection process,” said United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) acting Director
There are roughly 9 million immigrants, who are eligible to apply for US citizenship.
The proposed hikes would increase the application fee by $530 to $1,170. In addition to this, the cost incurred in obtaining legal permanent residency will also rise by 79% to $2,195, NBC News reported.
The USCIS defended the move by saying that the DHS has set the application fees at less than estimated costs. However, given the rise in citizenship applications over the last few years, the DHS is considering a revision.
The proposal is now out for public review until December 16, according to the National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA).
The proposed rule also outlines other kinds of fee increases too that can impact immigration-related applications by asylum-seekers,
The Trump administration is also planning to redirect USCIS funding of $207.6 million to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
See also:
H-1B visa rejection rates rise sharply — 30% of Cognizant, Capgemini, Accenture, Wipro and Infosys applications denied
US hikes H1-B visa application fee by another $10
US government bans at at least 7 IT companies from applying for H1B visas