Applying for a US visa does not come for free. Instead, you must pay fees for US nonimmigrant visas, US immigrant visas, as well as for the US diversity visa.
How to Pay a US Visa Fee?
Usually, you’re required to pay a US visa fee when you visit the embassy or consulate for your interview in your home country. Each foreign embassy and consulate may have its own guidelines on how to proceed with the payment of your visa, but you can usually pay the fee in cash or with a debit or credit card. In most cases, personal checks are not accepted.
US Nonimmigrant Visa Application Fees
To have a better sense of how much these visa application fees are, they could be divided into non-petition based visas and petition based visas.
| Visa Type | Fee in USD | Category |
| US Visitor Visas (B-1 visa and B-2 visa) | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| C-1 visa for transits to the US | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| D visa for airline or ship crewmembers | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| F visa for students and academics | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| I visa for media and journalists | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| J visa for exchange visitors (excluding those applicants sponsored by the US government) | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| M visa for vocational students | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| TN TD visa for NAFTA professionals | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| T visa for victims of human trafficking | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| U visa for victims of criminal activity | $185 | Non-Petition Based |
| H visas for temporary workers (H-1B visa, H-1B1 visa, H-2A visa, H-2B visa, H-3 visa, H-4 visa) | $205 | Petition Based |
| L visas for intracompany transfers (L-1 visa, L-2 visa) | $205 | Petition Based |
| O visas for persons with extraordinary abilities (O-1 visa, O-2 visa, O-3 visa) | $205 | Petition Based |
| P visa for athletes, entertainers, and artists | $205 | Petition Based |
| Q visa for international cultural exchanges | $205 | Petition Based |
| R visa for religious workers | $205 | Petition Based |
| E visa for traders and investors (E-1 visa, E-2 visa, E-3 visa) | $315 | Petition Based |
| K visa for a fiancé or spouse of a US citizen | $265.00 | Petition Based |
Besides the petition and non-petition based non-immigrant visas, there also other categories and fees that must be paid such as:
- For the Border Crossing Card for Mexican Citizens, the application fee for applicants over 15 years old is 185.00 USD, while for those under 15 years old, it is 16.00 USD.
- For petitioners for the L visas, there is also a fee of 500.00 USD for fraud detection and prevention
- For petitioners for H visas, there is a fee of 4,500.00 USD for petitioning to the US institutions to bring a foreign temporary worker to the US.
When are fees not necessary for US nonimmigrant visas?
There are also instances where you do not have to pay a fee and that is in these situations:
- When you apply for A, G, C-2, C-3, NATO, and diplomatic visas.
- For a J visa applicant sponsored by the US government.
- To replace a machine-readable visa when the original visa was not well stamped and it was not the applicant’s fault.
- For applicants who are part of international agreements such as members of staff of the UN Headquarters and their families.
- For applicants traveling for charity purposes.
- For US government employees traveling for official business.
- For parents, siblings, spouse, and children of a US government employee who was killed in the line of duty, and the family is traveling to attend the funeral or burial.
US Nonimmigrant Visa Reciprocity Fees
Reciprocity fees depend on the country you are currently residing and applying from, as well as the passport that you have. This fee must be paid before you get your passport back from the US Embassy.
There are situations when an applicant does not have to pay a reciprocity fee and that happens if the applicant is:
- Part of international agreements such as members of staff of the UN Headquarters or the UN General Assembly, and their families.
- Transiting to the UN Headquarters.
- Part of a US government sponsored program and their spouse and children.
- Traveling for charity purposes.
US Immigrant Visa Fees
The US immigrant visas are those that allow a person to stay permanently in the US where they can live and work. The fees for the immigrant visas are for petitions as well as processing fees, as shown in the table below:
| Fee Type | Amount (USD) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Form I-130, Immigrant Petition for Relative | $535 | For petitioning an immigrant relative |
| Form I-600 or Form I-800, Orphan Immediate Relative Petition | $775 | For orphan or immediate relative petitions (I-600/I-800) |
| Immediate Relative or Family Preference Immigration Application | $325 | Processing fee for family-based immigration applications |
| Employment-Based Immigration Application | $345 | Processing fee for employment-based immigration applications |
| Other Immigration Applications (e.g., self-petitioning) | $205 | Processing fee for other immigration types |
| K Visa (Fiancé or Spouse of a US Citizen) | $265 | Processing fee for K visas |
| Certain Afghan or Iraqi Special Immigrant Applications | No Fee | For certain special immigrant applications |
| Affidavit of Support | $120 | Fee paid by the US sponsor to support the applicant financially |
| Diversity Visa Application Fee | $330 | Fee to apply for the US Diversity Visa or Lottery |
Note: These fees are as of July 2024 and are subject to change. For more accurate information on updated, please consult with the US Department of State, US Citizenship and Immigration Services, or the US Homeland Department. Additionally, please review any instructions you obtain from the US Embassy or Consulate you are applying from.