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US announces new visa fee structure
The US embassy has announced new visa fees for a variety of consular services at its mission here and at the consulates in Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata from March 8.
The US embassy has announced new visa fees for a variety of consular services at its mission here and at the consulates in Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata from March 8.
A new US law has created a $500 fraud prevention and detection fee, the proceeds of which will be used to assist in detecting and deterring fraud in H-1B and L visas, the embassy said in a statement.
The Department of Homeland Security will collect the new fraud prevention and detection fee from employers in the US who file a petition to grant H-1B and L visas, or to obtain authorisation for an alien changing his employer.
Visa sections at US embassies and consulates will collect a similar $500 fee for L-1 visas as employers in the US would not have been charged this fee, the embassy statement said. The new legislation — Consolidated Appropriations Act — has also created two other fees — a surcharge of $12 to be added to the current pass application fee and surcharge of $45 to be added to immigration visas.
The $12 surcharge will be used to increase border security and support the issuance of the newly-designed passport containing security features. The surcharge of $45 for strengthening the security of visa adjudication and the physical visa document itself, takes the total fee to $380, the embassy communiqué added.
