The US is reportedly introducing a brand new $250 “Visa Integrity Price” relevant to virtually all non-immigrant Visa classes. The transfer is anticipated to considerably improve the price of journey and work for Indian nationals, and doubtlessly impression know-how corporations reliant on H-1B visas. The brand new price, a part of the just lately signed Omnibus Act (dubbed “Trump’s One Huge Stunning Invoice”), took impact on July 4th, with broad implications for vacationers, college students, and professionals.The “Visa Integrity Price” is claimed to be designed as a safety deposit and is refundable beneath particular circumstances, primarily if Visa holders depart the US inside 5 days of their Visa expiration with out in search of an extension or change in standing. The price can also be topic to annual changes for inflation. Exemptions apply solely to diplomatic visa classes (A and G).
How a lot would be the whole US Visa price together with $250 Integrity Price
For Indian nationals, the brand new levy is projected to boost the common vacationer visa price by 2.5 instances, pushing it to roughly Rs 40,000 ($472) beginning in 2026. This revised price incorporates the brand new $250 Integrity Price, a $24 I-94 price, and a $13 ESTA price, in line with a report in Financial Occasions, quoting the US-based immigration companies agency Fragomen.The know-how sector, each in India and the US, which closely makes use of work visas to convey engineering expertise to the US, is more likely to be notably impacted by the rise within the US Visa price. Consultants advise aspiring candidates to issue within the elevated working capital prices related to the revised visa processing. He additionally beneficial scheduling visa appointments earlier than 2026 to keep away from the brand new levy.
Defined: What does the US ‘Visa Integrity Price’ imply for you
The newly launched $250 US ‘Visa Integrity Price’ is basically a safety deposit that almost all non-immigrant visa candidates will now need to pay along with their common visa software charges. This contains people making use of for vacationer, enterprise, scholar, work, and alternate visas. The acknowledged goal of this price is to encourage compliance with visa phrases and circumstances. Whereas the price is refundable, it requires the visa holder to depart the US inside 5 days of their visa expiring with out in search of extensions or adjustments to their standing. For brief-term guests like vacationers, this is likely to be simple. Nevertheless, for college kids or professionals on multi-year visas, their cash could possibly be held by the US authorities for a major period, impacting their monetary planning. The US visa price can also be set to extend yearly with inflation. This measure is anticipated to make US visas significantly costlier, notably for Indian nationals, doubtlessly influencing selections to journey, examine, or work in the US.
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