Practice Resources

Practice Alert: USCIS Responds to AILA Inquiry with respect to Filing Fees for Form I-129

4/19/24 AILA Doc. No. 24041902. Asylum, Business Immigration, EB-5 Investors, H-1B & H-1B1 Specialty Occupation, L-1 Intracompany Transferee, Students & Schools

As a result of a recent AILA inquiry, USCIS has advised that the Fee Schedule for I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker – H-1B and H-1B1 Petitions has just been updated to indicate the correct information with respect to the additional required fees for online filings. Previously, the information listed was unclear and could have been construed as an indication that the additional fees, such as the ACWIA fee, the Fraud Detection Fee and Asylum Program fee, were not required if a Form I-129 was filed online. The revised fee schedule now provides the following (new clarifying information in bold text):

View Fee Schedule on the USCIS Website

Filing Category

Paper Filing Fee

Online Filing Fee

  1. If you are filing H-1B or H-1B1 petitions.

  2. If you are filing as a Small Employer or Nonprofit.
  1. $780 plus additional fees
  2. $460 plus additional fees, if applicable
  1. $730 plus additional fees
  2. $460 plus additional fees, if applicable

Additional Fees:

  1. Asylum Program Fee
    1. If you are filing as a Nonprofit;
    2. If you are filing as a Small Employer.

If paying by check or money order, submit the fee separately.

  1. $600

    1. $0
    2. $300

  1. $600

    1. $0
    2. $300

Additional Fees:

H-1B petitioners must submit a Fraud Prevention and Detection fee if they are:

  1. Seeking initial approval of H-1B nonimmigrant status for a beneficiary; or
  2. Seeking approval to employ an H-1B nonimmigrant currently working for another petitioner.

Petitioners for Chile or Singapore H-1B1 Free Trade Nonimmigrants do not have to pay the Fraud Prevention and Detection fee. Fraud Prevention and Detection fee, when applicable, may not be waived.

If paying by check or money order, submit the fee separately.

$500

$500

Additional Fees:

H-1B petitioners are required to submit an additional fee mandated by Public Law 114-113, if:

  1. They are required to submit the Fraud Prevention and Detection fee; and
  2. They employ 50 or more individuals in the United States; and
  3. More than 50 percent of those employees are in H-1B, L-1A, or L-1B nonimmigrant status.

If paying by check or money order, submit the fee separately.

$4,000

$4,000

Additional Fees:

American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act (ACWIA). Petitioners filing for:

  1. An H-1B nonimmigrant; or
  2. A Chile or Singapore H-1B1 Free Trade Nonimmigrant must submit an additional ACWIA fee unless they are exempt under Section 2 of the H-1B Data Collection and Filing Fee Exemption Supplement.

To determine which ACWIA fee to pay, complete Section 2 of the H-1B Data Collection and Filing Fee Exemption Supplement.

Payment for this fee may be made in the form of a single check or money order for the total amount due (filing fee + ACWIA fee), or as two separate checks or money orders (one for the ACWIA fee and one for the filing fee).

$1,500 or $750
(depending on number of workers the petitioner employs)

$1,500 or $750
(depending on number of workers the petitioner employs)

 

AILA has also recently requested clarification from USCIS on two other issues relating to the new fee schedule:

  1. We have requested that USCIS clarify information on the Premium Processing webpage that appears to indicate that some Form I-539 visa categories (e.g., H-4, J-1, J-2, L-2,) are presently eligible for Premium Processing when, in fact, they are currently not eligible for this service; and
  2. We have requested that USCIS confirm that the Form I-526E $1,000 Integrity Fund Fee continues to be included in the base filing fee for these EB-5 petitions.

AILA will update this Practice Alert upon receipt of confirmation from USCIS on these issues.