UnidosUS Comments on Proposed Changes to USCIS Fee Schedule
DHS Docket No. USCIS 2021-0010—UnidosUS submitted a comment to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Fee Schedule and Changes to Certain Other Immigration Benefit Request Requirements, published on January 3, 2023.
In this comment, UnidosUS strongly opposes the increase in application fees for this proposed schedule, particularly those that impede naturalization and family-based immigration. We point out how these anticipated fees would only add to the numerous existing barriers precluding low-income immigrant families from integrating into the American social fabric. Our recommendations urge USCIS to expand fee waiver eligibility for low-income immigrants and similarly vulnerable populations and modernize its funding structure and find alternative ways to finance its processing in a way that does not rely on fees. The finalized USCIS fee schedule should be reflective of the Biden Administration’s promise and reinvigorated efforts to welcome new Americans.
