@CookieCrumbles

1. What you did to make you need a waiver
2. How longs it been since whatever you did
3. The seriousness
4. The application and how much well it tells them what they want to hear.

@J Rogers

I appreciate this thread greatly.

I had initially started my application process in January with my lawyer to make my first try as seamless as possible. I was told it was $585USD at the time and now finally finalizing my application it is $1100USD. I am now reconsidering the importance of my travel. However, the importance of my travel is significant because I was raised in the US for 10 years.

Now my question is, what determines an individuals waiver to be for 1 year or 5 years?

@wishbone You are looking at this the wrong way.

If a farmer in Kansas asked "why are you letting these people with an immigration offence/criminal record into the United States?

Homeland Security would say
1. We carefully vet them and keep an eye on them going forward
2. We reconsider the decision in a year/5 years
3. It costs YOU the taxpayer NOTHING. We charge EXACTLY what we think it costs us to process it.
4. We actually wish everyone would stop wanting to enter so we can focus on terrorism and the southern border.

The truth is if you asked Canadians the same question, they would agree that is a good compromise.
I rarely travel to the USA. I spend my dollars here.

@Samuel8911
yes I agree,
$140 cdn per month for 1 year waiver holders for the privilege to visit the US.
and the US doesn't give a rat's ass

@Barbara $1700 CAD every 1 to 5 years to visit a country will certainly make people rethink the importance of their relationship with our neighbor.

Just went to apply on April 29,2024 through esafe and the fee is $ 1100 :(

The Fee is $1100.00

Hi guys so is there an update to this post .. has the fees on esafe gone up from the 585$ the website still displays and is it charging the 1100$? While it locks the application?

@Surreygirl As soon as I can put a waiver through, I will update how much it cost. Anything is possible.

So I noticed last night on the esafe website it said it would be down on April 1 from 2am-5am, likely to update the website with new fees and forms etc. Well I just checked and the new I-192 application from is updated but the processing fee still shows as $585. So I went on the USCIS website and it says Paper Filing Fee $1100 so maybe the new fee is only for people who mail in their application, to encourage people to use E-safe.... I guess we will wait and see... If anyone applies this week let me know what you end up paying.

@John Rogers

Thank you for clarifying! Fee increases is disappointing but I guess it is what it is. I'll still pay for the freedom to travel.

@Justin Trump The actual fee worldwide is $930USD. Canadians, because we can access CPB directly via shared borders were always given a discount to $585.00USD. Both fees are going up to a standard $1100USD. The discount (from what the chart says) has been removed.

The I-192 for CBP is $585 increasing to $1100
The I-192 for USCIS is $930 increasing to $1100

@John Rogers - confused with something you had mentioned with the increase. You had stated that the fee is not $585 and that it $980... and going up to $1,100.

Can you explain? When I got my waiver last year, the fee was roughly $585 US. How is it $980?

So is the fee increasing by an additional $515 (585 + 515 = 1100) or not?

@Against John Rogers

My politics are quite left. Read more comments and you will see that I have railed at length against the Conservatives on here.

I was trying to explain the "American" mindset. I think it was more as a response to "its a money grab" which is a common theme among many of my clients.

A money grab is usually in response to someone WANTING your money. Homeland Security is a government agency full of Government employees. They are not "hoping" to make more money off Canadians. The agency is not trying to maximize profits, merely trying to get to the next fiscal year and break even. Read their minutes with Congress and its clear that is all they care about is breaking even.

I think the US has significant problems and I don't like their approach to "law and order" at all. I del with the system as it IS, not what I wish it WOULD be.

The last time their was a significant increase it went from $90 USD to $265USD and then from $265 to $545 then eventually $585USD.

It is NOT a money grab. Under this administration I get 1 or 2 September letters a MONTH. That's a significant increase from the past.

Is it fair to require some sort of application process for people with criminal records? That depends on you and what you believe. The Public by and large has their own opinion.

@John Rogers

For a guy that claims to be a liberal, I do find that your rhetoric tends towards right wing politics.

Yes, Canada does have TRPs, but after a certain time has elapsed, you no longer need one to enter because you are deemed rehabilitated. Yes, you require that extra paperwork, however your past indescrations are forgiven. As for the US, you require waivers for a lifetime. The fee increase is exorbitant, enough for anyone to disest crossing the border.

Again, 150 years ago, adultery and same sex marriage were crimes punishable by death in many places. 50 years ago, driving under the influence was a simple civil infraction. People could simply walk into another country without consequences. Passports were non-existant. Things change and society evolves. The average American is no American, but rather of European ancestry. The US and Canada are build on immigration. Perhaps, you should ask the native tribes how they feel? The average American is so proud walking onto foreign land which his ancestors stole.

Just because someone stole a chocolate bar at 16 or got caught driving under the influence at 20 should not bar them from entering another country, especially two countries who pride themselves of having the biggest open border.

Conservatives no longer can justify any other means, so poking on people with criminal records seems logical. Just like society changes, so do people and discrimination is rampant in this case. Politicians love it and nobody does nothing about it.

Maybe it's time we tell the US, as Canadians, we no longer need them and their waivers. Then again, they are about to elect a criminal to office. How about we as a society bar him entry into our great nation. "Make Canada Great Again". We don't need their guns, neither their NRA. We don't need their criminal gangs who have set foot in Toronto and Montreal. How about we build our wall.

As for vacation, no problem. Cuba is pretty safe. As for Mexico, you risk your life on the same level as being in Florida and California. Case closed.

https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees/frequently-asked-questions-on-the-uscis-fee-rule

Let me give a few facts so everyone has a better perspective of the fee increase.

1. The waiver fee is actually $930USD not $585USD. We get a discount because we can apply directly at the border. So the increase is actually $930-$1100

2. The United States doesn't subsidize much. And they want government departments dealing with non US citizens to subsidize themselves. For example Canada has an application fee of $50 so taxpayers subsidize the rest of the cost. Homeland Security cannot have a profit OR a loss at the end of the year. They must break even.

3. Canadians have a weird "view" of the "right" to go to another country. The US charges a fee to process an application so at least you can GO. Republicans have tried to eliminate waivers. Trump cut the budget of CBP and in 2020 had he won the election it would be $1400USD. Luckily, he lost. Canada also charges an application fee and we have TRP's and Rehabilitations. If everyone required VISAS and it was never free, you would never actually know the difference. Truthfully its only because you know other people get in free that you can compare.

4. For those who hate paying the fee (which I understand) why don't you start a campaign asking US citizens to please share some of the cost of your waiver so your fee can be lower. It should read like this "Hey US citizens. I have a prior criminal record/immigration offence and I want to travel into your country. You should bear some of the cost of this because........(fill in the reason) "

Maybe "Change.org?" Get a petition going.

5. The United States has millions of people dying to visit them every year. They couldn't care less if Canadians EVER go. Some businesses might but don't kid yourself. The average American could not care less if the Waiver program even exists.

The waiver program is nothing but a cash grab.

Seems so excessive especially when you get a 1 year waiver, and need to start the renewal 4 months after getting it.

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule to adjust certain immigration and naturalization benefit request fees for the first time since 2016. The final rule will allow USCIS to recover a greater share of its operating costs and support more timely processing of new applications.
The final rule is the result of a comprehensive fee review, as required by law, and follows the January 2023 publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking. The review concluded that the current fee schedule falls far short in recovering the full cost of agency operations, including the necessary expansion of humanitarian programs, federally mandated pay raises, additional staffing requirements, and other essential investments.
“For the first time in over seven years, USCIS is updating our fees to better meet the needs of our agency, enabling us to provide more timely decisions to those we serve,” said USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou. “Despite years of inadequate funding, the USCIS workforce has made great strides in customer service, backlog reduction, implementing new processes and programs, and upholding fairness, integrity, and respect for all we serve.”
USCIS received over 5,400 unique public comments in response to its January 2023 notice of proposed rulemaking. USCIS took into consideration comments and feedback received during the proposed rulemaking process. Acknowledging this feedback from stakeholders, the final fee rule includes several important updates since the initial rulemaking. The final rule:
• Lowers the agency’s required annual cost recovery by nearly $730 million, in part by considering the budget effects of improved efficiency measures;
• Expands fee exemptions for Special Immigrant Juveniles and victims of human trafficking, crime, and domestic violence; U.S. military service members and our Afghan allies; and families pursuing international adoption;
• Provides special fee discounts for nonprofit organizations and small business employers;
• Allows for half-price Employment Authorization Document applications for applicants for adjustment of status and a reduced fee for adjustment of status applicants under the age of 14 in certain situations;
• Expands eligibility for a 50% fee reduction for naturalization applications, available to individuals who can demonstrate household income between 150% and 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines; and
• Implements a standard $50 discount for online filers.
Every fee in the final rule is the same or lower than in the proposed rule. For most individual filers, the final rule limits how much newly established fees may increase. Under the final rule, the new fees will not increase by more than 26%, which is equivalent to the increase in the Consumer Price Index since the last fee rule was issued in 2016.
With the new revenues the rule will generate, USCIS will start using innovative solutions to improve customer experience and stem backlog growth. Although the fee increases announced today will allow USCIS to better offset overall costs, congressional funding continues to be necessary to sustainably and fully address the increased volume of caseloads associated with recent border crossers, including by hiring additional USCIS personnel to help right-size a system that was not built to manage the numbers of cases USCIS receives.
The new fees under the final rule will go into effect on April 1, 2024
USCIS encourages stakeholders to visit the Frequently Asked Questions page on its website to view a full list of the revised forms that will go into effect on April 1, 2024, along with the new fees. USCIS will accept prior editions of most forms during a grace period from April 1, 2024, through June 3, 2024. During this grace period, USCIS will accept both previous and new editions of certain forms, filed with the correct fee.
There will be no grace period for the following new forms, however, because they must be revised with a new fee calculation. Filers should click the links below to access a preview version of each new form edition before the April 1, 2024, effective date:
• Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker;
• Form I-129 CW, Petition for a CNMI-Only Nonimmigrant Transitional Worker;
• Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers;
• Form I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of an Orphan Petition (and supplement 1, 2 and 3); and
• Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.
USCIS will use the postmark date of a filing to determine which form version and fees are correct but will use the receipt date for purposes of any regulatory or statutory filing deadlines.
For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit uscis.gov or follow USCIS on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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