The U.S. State Department has announced an increase in the application fees for a U.S. non-immigrant visa. Effective January 1, 2008, fees will increase from $100 to $131. The increase is related to the cost of new security measures. The full text of the State Department's release is provided below:     Application Fees for Non-Immigrant Visas to Increase On January 1, 2008 Effective January 1, 2008, the application fee for a U.S. non-immigrant visa will increase from $100 to $131. This increase allows the Department to recover the costs of security and ...

Earlier this year, our office sent an advisory to clients, friends and community members on our email list to inform them of a scheduled increase in immigration filing fees. We encouraged anyone thinking of filing for naturalization (citizenship) in particular to file if they were eligible. We submitted many petitions and applications for our clients just before the July 30, 2007, deadline. Because of the increase in applications, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an advisory stating that the tremendous increase in applications has created a backlog in their ...

NOTE: After you read this post, see the February 2009 update with current wait times from the Visa Bulletin.   The answer depends on whether you are a permanent resident (green card holder) or a U.S. Citizen. U.S. Citizens can sponsor additional family members that green card holders cannot sponsor. Additionally, U.S. Citizens can petition for a fiance/fiancee to come to the U.S. to be married, while a green card holder is not given the same privilege. The person filing the petition is called the Petitioner. The person you are filing for is called the Beneficiary. Your ...