The public sentiment surrounding the US Visa fee increase is overwhelmingly negative, with significant frustration expressed regarding the financial burden it places on applicants, particularly from low-income countries. Many view the fee hike as a barrier to travel and migration, and there are concerns about the government's intentions with such policies. Additionally, numerous commenters contemplate alternative options outside the US due to the perceived excessive nature of the new fees.

US Government

US State Department

Visa Applicants

Please. I know so many people applying for it because it's free and takes 30 minutes to fill up. My parents' friends literally won the DV lottery and decided not to come.

RDSne

Im surprised the administration hasnt axed the whole thing altogether

-epyon

Maybe unpopular opinion, but if you can't afford 250 bucks to apply, you also can't afford 1000+ in fees if you get selected, plus significant costs for flights, initial living expenses, etc.

Right now it’s only free to enter, but completing the process is very expensive. Poor people are already filtered out

saintmsent

&gt; Form I-94 Fee (Sec. 70009): $24

am I going crazy or do I have to pay every time I enter from now on? or is that just going to be included in airfares? that goes to both I-94 and I-94W?

Firenzzz

I mean, this one kinda makes sense. From where I came from, I have seen a lot of highschoolers applying for DV and some winning but not being able to go for obvious reasons like them only being 18-19 or money so this at least gives people who are serious about this a bit more chance.

Salty_Tonight8521

As a participant from Uzbekistan, I fully agree with the $250 participation fee. In my country, nearly 3 million applicants enter the lottery, but only 3-4 thousand win, and fewer than half make it through to the end. This is because almost 99% of people have no idea what the Green Card is. They believe that by simply submitting an application, they will be presented with a red carpet to fly to the United States the following year. Most are unaware of the DS260 form, the paid medical exam, consular fees, flight costs, housing in the U.S., and so on. As a result, the majority of ‘winners’ drop out after the May drawing. For example, in DV2021 (if I am not mistaken), a mandatory field for a foreign passport was introduced. At that time, the passport in my country cost around $20 and took 1-2 weeks to obtain. How many people do you think were eliminated because of this? Nearly 2 million people dropped out, leaving about 800,000 (you can check this by official DV statistics), and this was only a $20 (they will need to get this passport to leave the country anyway). Now, consider the impact of a $250 fee. I believe around 10,000 people will remain, and even if it’s 100,000, I consider that acceptable given the opportunity at stake. In this case, everyone benefits: the U.S. treasury is replenished, and those who are serious and able to afford it will improve their chances.


I simply don’t understand the point of participating if you are not prepared to pay the $250, especially since the price you pay after winning will be much higher.

This also will eliminate cases when someone else can submit duplicate applications(there are a lot of leaked personal data now).

P.S.
Additionally, one of the advantages of the Diversity Visa Lottery is that it provides a legal way for immigration to the U.S., where the U.S. government controls the entire process and can filter those it accepts.


However, since the number of participants varies by country, the participation fee could also be adjusted depending on the number of applicants. In countries where fewer people apply, the fee could be kept minimal or even eliminated, while in countries with millions of applicants (like my country), the maximum fee could be set, for example, at $250. This fee could be reviewed annually and adjusted based on the number of applicants from the previous year.


Ultimately, the DV Lottery is designed to increase the national diversity of the U.S.

ValuableSuperb8510

It might be a small benefit to people legitimately looking to immigrate to the US, since it will weed out people who toss in a form for funsies who then get selected but are ultimately hesitant to push through with it. You can say that spots for people who decline to go will go to the next people in line, anyway, but those who got high numbers and unlikely to get in or people who didn't win at all could have had better odds in the first place had those for-fun applicants been weeded out via an application fee.

I'm not sure if the public charge rule applies for DV recipients, but I suppose this fee is a way to ensure a bit more that recipients won't need public assistance.

I'm more concerned about the heavy asylum application fee since you have oppressed people from poorer regions who may not be able to afford that amount on their own. The annual fee will be a trivial amount once asylum has been granted and the person is situated with a job in the US.

P.S. I'm looking at this purely on the basis of finances. Morality is a different topic altogether.

dumgarcia

Seems like it filters out people who cant pay to play.  And make it financially unattractive for some people to try or try multiple times

If its free. People attempt anyways

If its going to cost them and they lose the money if they dont pass, it should act like a deterrent

Its an obvious plan/goal what they are attempting

RandomGuy_81

Yeah because people applying for asylum have USD 1000 laying around!

bubblemania2020

Question so I’m understanding correctly, is this basically you have to pay 250$ now to enter the green card lottery? Assuming it passes the senate too?

CoyotesAngel

I have seen people just during dv lottery at the cyber just Press anyname and apply for dv lottery.  Just playing around with the computer.  Let them now play with 250 dollars for every joke. I support this. 

[deleted]

I support the Bill because that will automatically eliminate scammers, and also filtered out people who take it as a joke and left with only passionate American Dreamers.


I'm from a poor African Nation (Sierra Leone). here majority of the jobs here only pays $47 per month my job is not an exception and which requires at least 10hrs of work per day. so it takes like 6 months to get $250, I mean almost half a year to get that sum. so 90% of annual entrants here won't dare to enter if the Bill is passed and signed. It be like spending a 6 months salary on a lottery with no guarantee of winning is a higher risk that will only be taken by passionate American Dreamers and this implies to the majority of other African Countries.


However, the bill will only favor wealthier people or countries in some continents. But as for Africa, 90% of annual applicants won't take the risk to pay $250 to enter, meaning those who will enter will also have 90% chance of being selected, so the odds of winning will be great for risk takers then, and I want to be one of them. IN THE END, NO RISK, NO REWARD. GOD BLESS USA🇺🇲🇺🇲

EmergencyLychee5833

I'm so fcking happy, because i try to win since i was 19, its a good opportunity for people who rly need this

Educational-Zebra896

The odds of winning DV just improved by 100. They should let entrants buy more than one lottery ticket each year

Mission-Carry-887

In my view, this fee is basically designed to favor wealthier applicants who can afford to gamble $250 on a long shot. The lottery will still have the same 50,000 visas and attract hundreds of thousands of entries—even with the fee—but only those willing to part with that money can play. I doubt it’ll change the country mix winners at all.

Waelagag123

MrZurkon42

Heavy_Ear7472

It should simply have been done away with. The country is diverse enough that there is no need to bring in people with minimal education/skills for the sake of diversity. 

The DV should be scrapped and the visas should be made available to employment and family based categories in the current 224,000:140,000 ratio.

One_more_username

This is basically a death sentence to the VD program, without going through congress. Next step is to claim it's unpopular and shut it down.

Annoying_cat_22

It cost me some money sponsoring my spouse and her parents so I don’t see an issue.

drax2024

This is how i was able to come to America 🇺🇸 

For people talking about people winning and not coming, they are 50,000 green cards available and they announce MORE than 50,000 winners to account for this and generally the problem is the green cards DONT GET PROCESSED IN THE 12 month window not that people don’t turn up. Enough people will always wanna come

Neverland__

Honestly. This is a great move. Prevent scammers and cheaters trying to game the system. And improve the odds of legitimate applicants. Sorry if you can’t afford 250$ a year than you probably can’t afford to uproot your life and move overseas

Minimum-Weight7535

can someone explain Visa Integrity Fee (Sec. 70008): ≥ $250. This is a fee paid after being granted a non-immigrant visa. ?

It's additional 250$ for F-1 or J-1 visa? There are already fees for this.

Upset-War1866

TheRealKhaled

I have a question, for people who have some knowledge on the American law, I'm ok with paying the fee for applying, however, in addition to the low chance of winning, my country (Libya) is likely to be put in a travel ban list at any time, I'm worried that my country gets banned after I pay the fee, which makes my participation meaningless, do I have a right to get that money back in that case?

CyrenaicanBedouin

In third world country where i live this is significantly more than a monthly salary. $250 just for a lottery ticket... why not $5, if they want to filter out scammers and bots.

Thats very painful... I live only because of my hope to immigrate... and now... i dont know... why i am live then...

West_Begimer

i think you are confusing the diversity visa application with the travel authorization system application (which costs around 21$)

Lanarde

Glum_Comfort_3026

CXZ115

Man, the "[alien](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d5/1979_Alien_Design.jpg)"... for gods sakes 🤯

YUNeedUniqUserName

Another dumb Trump's administration move to restrict even perfectly legal migration. I find it even more frustrating given I'm Russian trying to get out of this doomed country. We are cut off from the international banking system and can't use Visa or Mastecard banking systems to pay for anything. Even fees. And for what? Laughable 5000 actual entrants? You must be kidding!

QuickPieBite

Please use the stickied post to discuss the fee increase. Trying to consolidate the discussion/Q&amp;A.

https://www.reddit.com/r/USCIS/comments/1afiuj4/uscis_fee_increase_is_official/

USCIS-ModTeam

Almost like they don't want people to work or travel while waiting.

Fancy-Jackfruit8578

Of course they did. Probably means there will be an absolute surge between now and April 1…the later you file the worse it will be for timelines

traderbotNS

Yeah, it’s fucked. I agree with filing as soon as you can but before 4/01/2024.

thejedipunk

I’m not all that surprised given the volumes they’re dealing with and the ability for them to do it. Do I like it? No. At least it’s just a $400 for the actual mandatory forms and not the whole $1245.

QtK_Dash

If it comes with guarantees that a certain application will be processed from start to finish in a certain time frame then raising the fee is acceptable. But the fact that they aren’t responsible to insure a good schedule and just raising the fees, is just another cash grab.

omar893

The question here !!!!  Would USCIS  process application faster with a new fee amount ? Or would be the same  late and slow with less payment (old amount). Just curious and wondering

Friendly_Minute_9960

I think the n400 application to be a u.s citizen is also increasing

Certain-Strike-185

Imagine being denied for some stupid shit that could have been avoided and you would have to reapply. I'm grateful to be out of this game.

Unable_Bid

All this money them charging and still people waiting yrs and months for them stuff

ExcitingGiraffe8966

Does it mean, i can pay the increased fee to get the decision fast?

Moegermany

I dont get it. I-131 is  $575 currently according to [https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees/frequently-asked-questions-on-the-uscis-fee-rule](https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees/frequently-asked-questions-on-the-uscis-fee-rule) 

it used to be free if you file along with i485?

hotakaPAD

USCIS is almost entirely funded by fees thanks to Congress. Plus the massive influx of people coming in and filing forms stretches USCIS’s services even more, requiring fee hikes to sustain the ever growing bureaucracy. It’s a mess.

spartikle

We got the greencard before we got the advance parole or a SS# from I765....

dawhim1

Wild-Set8024

We hope to submit everything by next week! 🤞🏼

violagab

I'm really glad my husband and I are through this step and feel awful for people who still have to go through it. We needed a sponsor when I filed for my AOS because my husband is self-employed and they said he didn't make enough at the time, but we also didn't come close to meeting the threshold for a fee waiver. This kind of hit to our bank account in the early stages of our marriage and before I was able to work would have been a disaster.

SCros13

They should offer a premium application for much higher fees that wait times are shorter

Turcolorado

Guest22_1729

Jesus.. and the service gets more erratic.

ca6vtec

If at least paying the fees made the process more efficient. You pay for a premium, and the processing time is shit.

mwkr

CodingOnCaffeine

The concept of separating 765 from 485 fee is mad. You need to pay to work - how ridiculous is that? 
Sanctuary cities will see consequences 

Desperate-Menu9154

Euphoric-Fly-3510

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AutoModerator

So fucked up. I don’t understand why they need to charge so much for people to work/travel while they wait 1-2+ years on their GC. It’s not like those two things in life are such a luxury. Like don’t they want new waiting immigrants to pay taxes… 🙃

No_Atmosphere5395

hot_and_chill

PINAYMUNSTER49

There’ll be no travellin’ then until the card is ready then.

spiritofniter

So will there be fees for renewals for I-765 and I-131 too?

thenerdstark

Yeah our lawyer told us to get our paperwork in asap since the filing fees were gonna pretty much double by March or April. We should be filing next week🤞

phoenix-khap

I filed a 130 over a year ago and it’s still being processed.

Worldly-Coffee-5907

Best way to deal with this is do consular I-130s. Married couples should not pay NVC until married for 18 months

nonracistusername

**Title:**  [Visa application charge increases from July 2025](https://www.reddit.com/r/AusVisa/comments/1llnppb/visa_application_charge_increases_from_july_2025/), posted by **ViaMigration**

**Full text:** Just a quick heads-up for anyone planning to lodge a visa application soon. The Department of Home Affairs is increasing visa application charges (VACs) from **1 July 2025** and some of the hikes are pretty significant.

The [VAC pricing estimator](https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/visa-pricing-estimator) had the new pricing showing earlier this week, but it’s since been pulled down. But here’s what I saw:

**Partner visa:** increasing to $9,365 AUD  
**482 visa:** $3,210  
**186 &amp; 494 visas:** both going up to $4,910  
**Working Holiday (417):** $670

In general the prices are increasing by 3%

I’ve written a quick summary of what’s changing (and what this might mean if you’re planning to lodge soon): [https://viamigration.com.au/visa-application-fee-increases-july-2025/](https://viamigration.com.au/visa-application-fee-increases-july-2025/)

It’s probably a good idea to get your application in before 1 July if you’re ready. 



Kris Haljak, Registered Migration Agent 2418673, [Via Migration](https://viamigration.com.au/)

Disclaimer: The comments made here are general and not migration advice. Please seek migration assistance specific to your situation from a registered professional.   



--------------------

^(This is the original text of the post and this is an automated service)


*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AusVisa) if you have any questions or concerns.*

I lodged my citizenship by descent application today. Feeling good!

dylantherabbit2016

CartographerLow3676

Flyer888

Hi Kris. Thanks for the update.

a question below

Can we submit some documents later, or do we need to submit  majority while submitting the partner visa application 309?

thanks in advance

Snake_Grape

The working holiday visa is a bit high,but they should the partner visa upto 15k to 20k.Also the others to.
Australia government being Australian government they will keep increasing them.
Labour government loves spending money they dont have.
Its gotta come from somewhere

Mostcooked

Hi Kris, needing some help/advice please.
Myself and my partner are both from the UK, on our third year 417 WHV which is close to expiring.
We submitted EOI for 189 visa - in an occupation where there is shortage and skilled occupation in healthcare - critical care nurse with 75 points total.
Could redditors please give some advice on what visas we could apply for while on a response to the EOI and a 189 invite? As we would prefer not to leave Australia in the meantime.
Is there any visas we could apply for? Or is there a 189 invitation round coming soon? We heard there may be one this month (July).
Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Aus-PR-LetsGo

If they increase the price at least make it faster

pluep

Does the partner visa include people on subclass 500 trying to bring their partner?

Damilola200

What about PERMANENT RESIDENCE too also increases?

Silver-Monk-9572

Am currently in this phase plus if you incorporate the dependants the cost sky rockets. But with current retrogression and slow movements, it's best one starts saving early because at the end of the day it's worth it.

fightingbattle

It's a matter of saving and selling a property that is not in use to be able meet the cost.

Adept_Amoeba3108

With this kind of trend we better start saving early

LNyokabi

OkBluebird9377

This journey is long , tiresome but worth it for sure....never an easy one in terms of finances....but we you have a goal to be a USRN and work in the US you have to do what it takes...be patient and be hopeful that the journey will take you to the desired destination..

Able_Drawer8087

jamaa_wetu

Hot_Emergency378

Since you already have your appointments scheduled, you do not need to pay the visa fee again. Payment receipts are not required to be carried during your appointments anymore. The appointment confirmation page (https://www.usvisascheduling.com/en-US/appointment-confirmation/) print out alone is sufficient.

tornadozephyr

Fees paid are valid for one year. You need to pay again. 925 USD? Where are you from?

skumarss

While you wait for someone to comment on your post, please ensure that you have included the **country** from which you are applying the visa and your **visa type** either in the title or in the body of the post. If not, please edit your post and include them.


*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/usvisascheduling) if you have any questions or concerns.*

But your appointment reschedule on May 12 2025, Why are you pay the visa fee again?

Parth_8888

hey I had the same issue, no you don't have to pay, only in case  you reschedule now , payment will be needed. Below link should give you your appoinement and payment details just carry that

 [https://www.usvisascheduling.com/en-US/appointment-confirmation/](https://www.usvisascheduling.com/en-US/appointment-confirmation/)

Smooth-Raspberry-597

Yes fee receipt is valid for a year. You need to repay.

sigma-magic

Hey, you don't need to pay those fees again!  Someone I know got theirs paid in 2024 and their visa approved in March 2025.  So, no fees for you. Just fill out that DS-160 form again, and remember to bring both the old and new ones to your appointments.

yuizu69

If your interview was rescheduled by the.embassy due to unrest in the country, they will honor the upcoming interview. However, if you intend to reschedule the present interview or cancel and book a new interview you need to pay the fees again.

Gnanamookan

https://preview.redd.it/kad03tzia8re1.png?width=1165&amp;format=png&amp;auto=webp&amp;s=359f987c63fb37455dd02efdef69e5cb6f0972f6

Update : Thank you so much everyone .Today I contacted them again &amp; told my situation &amp; they just gave me this email so instead of confirmation letter they told me to bring this to the interview. So my question is ,will this work ?

RiseNo7298

A new 'Visa Integrity Fee' of $250 will significantly raise costs for non-immigrant visa applicants, particularly affecting Indian tourists, students, and workers.

US Visa Fee Increase

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