USCIS Public Engagement Division: Invitation to Stakeholder Engagement on USCIS Immigrant Free

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sent this bulletin at 12/14/2012 12:32 PM EST

Dear Stakeholder,

 

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) invites interested individuals to participate in a stakeholder teleconference on Wednesday, December 19, 2012 at 8:00am (Eastern) or 12:00pm (Eastern) to discuss the implementation of the USCIS Immigrant Fee. The same engagement will be held at two different times to accommodate participants domestically and abroad.

 

On Sept. 24, 2010, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published in the Federal Register a Final Rule that adjusted fees for immigration applications and petitions. This rule established a new fee of $165 for certain immigrant visas. This fee was introduced to allow USCIS to recover the costs of processing immigrant visas in the United States after immigrant visa holders receive their visa packages from the Department of State (DOS).

 

Beginning Feb. 1, 2013, any individual who receives an immigrant visa package from a United States consulate or embassy must pay this fee. In order to simplify and centralize the payment process, immigrant visa holders must pay online through the USCIS website after they receive their visa package from DOS and before they depart for the United States. Immigrant visa holders will receive specific information on how to submit their payment when they receive their visa package from DOS.

 

During this engagement, USCIS will discuss who will be required to pay the fee, explain how payments will be remitted, and answer additional questions.

 

To Participate in the Session

Please email the Public Engagement Division no later than Tuesday, December 18, 2012 at Public.Engagement@uscis.dhs.gov.

 

Please reference “Immigrant Fee” in the subject line of your email. Please also include your full name and the organization you represent in the body of the email.

 

 

To Join the Session

On the day of the engagement please use the information below to join the session by phone. We recommend calling in ten minutes before the start of the teleconference.

Call-in Number Inside the US: 1-888-790-3331

Call-in Number Outside the US: 1-210-234-0091

Passcode: 5741019

 

Many Thanks,

 

Public Engagement Division

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services