A FINAL Rule regarding increases to certain non-immigrant visa application (NIV) processing fees and the Border Crossing Card (BCC) has been published.
For now, it is applicable to Mexicans age 15 and above, the United States (U.S.) Department of State said.
According to a statement by the American Embassy in Abuja, these increases were published in the Federal Register on Tuesday and became effective from today.
A source contacted at the American Consulate in Lagos could not clarify whether the new rule will apply to Nigerian travellers.
The source confirmed that the announcement came from the State Department.
The fee for visitor visas for business or tourism (B1/B2s and BCCs), and other non-petition based NIVs such as student and exchange visitor visas, will increase from $160 to $185, the statement indicated.
It also reads: “The fee for certain petition-based nonimmigrant visas for temporary workers (H, L, O, P, Q, and R categories) will increase from $190 to $205.
“The fee for a treaty trader, treaty investor, and treaty applicants in a specialty occupation (E category) will increase from $205 to $315.”
NIV fees are set based on the actual cost of providing NIV services and are determined after conducting a study of the cost of these services.
It said: “The department uses an Activity-Based Costing (ABC) methodology to calculate, annually, the cost of providing consular services, including visa services.
“The fees for most non-petition based NIVs were last updated in 2012, and certain other NIV fees were last updated in 2014.”
Other consular fees, according to the statement, are not affected by this rule, including the waiver of the two-year residency required fee for certain exchange visitors.
It stated that visas for work and tourism are essential to President Biden’s foreign policy, “and we recognise the critical role international travel plays in the U.S. economy”.
Fee information can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs website, travel.state.gov, and on the websites of U.S. embassies and consulates.
The Department of State restated its commitment to facilitating legitimate travel to the U.S. both immigrant and non-immigrant travellers.