By Joshua Chibuzo Andrew, Owerri
The United States (US) Embassy in Nigeria on Thursday announced an increase in non-immigrant visa application processing fees.
The embassy in a website statement announced that the fees for visitor visas for business or tourism (B1 and B2 visas and Border Crossing Cards), as well as student and exchange visitor visas have been increased.
“The Department of State recently published a Final Rule regarding increases to certain nonimmigrant visa application (NIV) processing fees and the Border Crossing Card (BCC) for Mexican citizens age 15 and over,” the embassy said.
“The effective date of the fee increase is postponed from May 30 to June 17, 2023. On June 17, 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 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.”
The US Embassy said the 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 explained that 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.
According to the US Embassy, other consular fees are not affected by this rule, including the waiver of the two-year residency required fee for certain exchange visitors.
“Visas for work and tourism are essential to President Biden’s foreign policy, and we recognize the critical role international travel plays in the U.S. economy.”
