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Schedule of Fees for Consular Services-Nonimmigrant and Special Visa Fees rule (2023)

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The Schedule of Fees for Consular Services-Nonimmigrant and Special Visa Fees rule is a significant rule issued by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) effective May 30, 2023, that raised application processing fees for certain types of visas and related services pursuant to the general user charges statute (which allows government agencies to charge fees for services to recover costs to the government).[1]

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Name: Schedule of Fees for Consular Services-Nonimmigrant and Special Visa Fees
  • Action: Final rule
  • Type of significant rule: Economically significant rule
  • Timeline

    The following timeline details key rulemaking activity:

    • May 30, 2023: The final took effect.[1]
    • March 28, 2023: The final rule was published.[1]
    • February 28, 2022: The comment period closed.[1]
    • December 29, 2021: The DOS issued a notice of proposed rulemaking and opened the comment period.[1]

    Background

    The Department of State is responsible for issuing visas and border crossing cards to citizens of other countries. The department typically "sets and collects fees for consular services based on the concept of full cost recovery to the U.S. Government," according to the rule. This 2023 rule raised application processing fees for certain types of visas and related services to better offset the costs to the department of providing such services based on the department's calculations.[1]

    Summary of the rule

    The following is a summary of the rule from the rule's entry in the Federal Register:

    This rule adopts as final adjustments to the Schedule of Fees for Consular Services (Schedule of Fees) for several nonimmigrant visa (NIV) application processing fees and the Border Crossing Card (BCC) for Mexican citizens age 15 and over. These adjustments are based on the findings of the most recently approved update to the Cost of Service Model (CoSM) and incorporate revised projections for nonimmigrant visa demand. This rule also addresses public comments received by the Department on the originally proposed fee recommendations found in the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).[1][2]

    Summary of provisions

    The following is a summary of the provisions from the rule's entry in the Federal Register:[1]

    Below are the adjustments to the fee recommendations in the NPRM that the Department will implement in this final rule:

    • The application processing fee for non-petition based NIVs (except E category), will be raised from $160 to $185. This represents a 15.6 percent increase over the current fee, but is $60 or 24.5 percent below the original proposal of $245.
    • The application processing fee for H, L, O, P, Q, and R category NIVs, will be raised from $190 to $205. This represents a 7.9 percent increase over the current fee, but is $105 or 33.9 percent below the original proposal of $310.
    • The processing fee for the BCCs for Mexican citizens age 15 and over will be raised from $160 to $185. This represents a 15.6 percent increase over the current fee, but is $60 or 24.5 percent below the original proposal of $245.
    • The fee for E category NIVs will be raised from $205 to $315. This represents a 53.7 percent increase over the current fee, but is $170 or 35 percent below the original proposal of $485.
    • The fee for the exchange visitor waiver of two-year residency requirement will be maintained at $120, instead of the proposed $510.

    As discussed above, the Department applied the same methodology to calculate the revised fees and the relevant authorities found in the NPRM apply to these revised fee recommendations. This rule also addresses public comments received by the Department on the originally proposed fee recommendations found in the NPRM.[2]

    Significant impact

    See also: Significant regulatory action

    Executive Order 12866, issued by President Bill Clinton (D) in 1993, directed the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to determine which agency rules qualify as significant rules and thus are subject to OMB review.

    Significant rules have had or might have a large impact on the economy, environment, public health, or state or local governments. These actions may also conflict with other rules or presidential priorities. Executive Order 12866 further defined an economically significant rule as a significant rule with an associated economic impact of $100 million or more. Executive Order 14094, issued by President Joe Biden (D) on April 6, 2023, made changes to Executive Order 12866, including referring to economically significant rules as section 3(f)(1) significant rules and raising the monetary threshold for economic significance to $200 million or more.[1]


    The text of the rule states that OMB deemed this rule economically significant:

    OMB has determined that this rule is economically significant under Executive Order 12866.[2]

    Text of the rule

    The full text of the rule is available below:[1]

    See also

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Federal Register, "Schedule of Fees for Consular Services-Nonimmigrant and Special Visa Fees," March 28, 2023
    2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.