Colorado Politics

New $250 ‘visa integrity fee’ will affect millions of foreign visitors to US

Millions of foreign visitors to the United States will likely have to pay a new $250 visa fee introduced by President Donald Trump’s newly established “big, beautiful bill.”

Starting Oct. 1, the $250 “visa integrity fee,” tacked on to the visa’s $185 existing cost, will apply to any foreign national seeking to enter the U.S. on a nonimmigrant visa. This classification applies to tourists, people traveling for business, students, and more, and allows them to stay in the U.S. for up to six months. Roughly 11 million visitors to the U.S. were issued nonimmigrant visas in 2024, according to the New York Times.

Visitors coming to the U.S. under the visa-waiver program, which allows them to stay for 90 days or less, will not be required to pay the fee. Most visitors from Canada, Europe, Australia, Israel, and Japan are included in the waiver program.

It’s possible visitors could be refunded the integrity fee once they return home, as long as they followed the rules and restrictions of their visa. However, it’s unclear how refunds would be given.

The goal of the new fee is to deter visa overstays, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The fee will provide a financial incentive for visitors to abide by the rules of their visas and not remain in the U.S. past their visa expiration date.

However, many critics have voiced opposition to the new fee. Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, told Forbes that it’s essentially a “self-imposed tariff” on international travelers that could discourage tourists from traveling to the U.S.

There are also concerns about how this will affect the 2026 World Cup, which the U.S. is hosting with Canada and Mexico. The last World Cup in 2022 saw more than a million international attendees, according to statistics from FIFA.

RUBIO HITS BRAZILIAN JUDGE WITH VISA RESTRICTIONS OVER BOLSONARO ‘WITCH HUNT’

The integrity fee isn’t the only change tourists will face, as there will also be an increase for the I-94 form fee. Used to document a traveler’s departure and arrival, the form will have a fee increase from $6 to $24. The fee for the Electronic Visa Update System, which applies to certain nonimmigrants from China, will also increase from $8 to at least $30.

Not even visitors under the visa-waiver program will escape rate hikes, as their fee for the Electronic System for Travel Authorization will increase from $21 to $40.

Tags

PREV

PREVIOUS

Steve Hilton blasts ‘California corruption’ misusing fire relief funds

Gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton criticized the benefit concert FireAid for not getting enough donations directly to the Los Angeles fires victims. FireAid was a concert held in January, days after the Palisades and Eaton fires were active for 24 days as it burned a combined 37,000 acres, damaged over 16,000 structures, and resulted in 17 […]

NEXT

NEXT UP

Voters fail Bondi’s handling of Epstein case

Voters are giving Attorney General Pam Bondi‘s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal a thumbs-down and remain split on her overall performance as President Donald Trump’s top law enforcement officer. In the latest Rasmussen Reports survey shared with Secrets, 33% gave Bondi’s handling of the Epstein case a good to excellent grade. Another 54% rated […]


Welcome Back.

Streak: 9 days i

Stories you've missed since your last login:

Stories you've saved for later:

Recommended stories based on your interests:

Edit my interests