US immigration fee rises makes millions less than predicted
September 15 2009 by Mark Johnstone
Alejandro Mayorkas
The US government, who imposed US visa fee increases two years ago, has collected hundreds of millions of dollars less than it thought it would.
The increases were meant to raise an extra $1 billion in revenue for US immigration services. This would have given total revenue of $2.83 billion by the end of this fiscal year that ends September 30. But predictions expect actual revenues will be $282 million short of that figure.
Agency officials blamed the deficit on an overall drop in US visa applications being filed, possibly as a result of the ongoing global recesssion. The agency has twice adjusted its estimated number of applications and the amount of revenue they would bring in. US immigration officials also are reducing some spending, looking to Congress for some relief, and is studying the fee structure as required every two years.
Director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, Alejandro Mayorkas, quoted in Associated Press, said: "Given the current economic climate, we anticipate that the current filing trend will continue. We will therefore continue to make the necessary adjustments while remaining dedicated to delivering on our public service mission."
The House Appropriations Committee also said US immigration application filings are expected to remain down in 2010, and the agency's costs will far exceed fee revenue. A report attached to the 2010 Homeland Security appropriations bill said lawmakers "cannot, in good conscience," allow CIS to spend beyond its projected revenue from the fees.
Under the 2007 fee increases, the cost of applying for American citizenship doubled to $595, with an extra $80 fingerprinting fee. The cost of applying for legal permanent residency tripled to $905 plus the fingerprinting fee.
The agency was flooded with a record 7.7 million immigration applications in 2007 as filers tried to beat the fee increase. Applications for visas for a move to the US dropped off after the spike, as they have historically with other fee increases. But they have not returned to levels before the increase.
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