U.S. entry fee hike: Canadian residents, foreign workers, and citizens may face an extra $250 charge
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a new fee for non-immigrant visa applicants, effective late 2025. The Visa Integrity Fee, part of the H.R.1 Act, aims to enhance the US visa system's integrity.
This fee will apply to 'any alien issued a non-immigrant visa at the time of such issuance.' It won't apply to spouses and children of U.S. citizens immigrating to the U.S. (K-3 and K-4 visas), fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens (K-1 and K-2 visas), Australian treaty workers' spouses and children (E-3D), and individuals providing critical information to U.S. law enforcement or intelligence agencies (S-5, S-6, and S-7 visas).
Non-immigrant visa categories include tourist and business (B-1/B-2) visas, student (F/M), work (H-1B/H-4), and exchange visas (J). Applicants from non-waiver countries, including citizens from countries such as China, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Brazil, will have to pay this fee.
Canadian travelers requiring a U.S. visa due to not being in the Visa Waiver Program will also have to pay the $250 fee. This fee applies particularly to travelers from countries outside the Visa Waiver Program, which does not include most Canadian tourists who typically travel under special agreements. However, if Canadians hold passports from countries outside the program or require a visa under other circumstances, they would be subject to this fee.
The Visa Integrity Fee does not apply to government or diplomatic travel (A, G, or NATO visa categories) or Canadian permanent residents and temporary residents who hold citizenship from countries that require a U.S. non-immigrant visa to enter the country.
As of now, the U.S. government has not shared details about the refund process and when it will be operational. The fee is not refundable, but those who comply with the conditions of the non-immigrant visa, do not work without authorization, do not seek to extend their visas, and leave the U.S. not later than five days after the last day of the period of validity, or have their visa extended or adjusted to permanent residency status while in the U.S. may be eligible for reimbursement.
The following countries are covered by the U.S. Visa Waiver Program and will not have to pay the Visa Integrity Fee: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom. Canada does not feature on the list of Visa Waiver Program countries as citizens of Canada do not require an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) to enter the U.S.
The Visa Integrity Fee was signed into law on July 4. Canadian citizens are generally exempt from requiring a visa to travel to the U.S., but this fee will impact Canadian citizens applying for non-immigrant visas, such as specific work or student visas (H1-B or F-1). The fee is a new 250 USD charge for non-immigrant U.S. visas. The fee amount is adjusted to inflation and may increase each year.
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