If you’re applying for almost any US nonimmigrant visa in fiscal year 2026 — a B1/B2 visitor visa, an F-1 student visa, an H-1B or L-1 work visa, or a dependent visa — expect a new line item: the Visa Integrity Fee, a flat $250 charge added on top of everything else you already pay.
This guide explains where the fee comes from, exactly who has to pay it, when it’s collected, and what “reimbursement” actually means in practice right now.
Where the fee comes from
The Visa Integrity Fee was created by Section 100007 of H.R. 1, the reconciliation law commonly called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed on July 4, 2025. USCIS’s implementing notice in the Federal Register — “USCIS Immigration Fees Required by HR-1 Reconciliation Bill” (published July 22, 2025) — confirms the fee is a statutory requirement tied to nonimmigrant visa issuance, not a discretionary agency fee like the regular MRV application fee. Because it’s set in statute, the State Department cannot waive or discount it case by case.
Who has to pay it
The fee applies to most nonimmigrant visa categories, including:
- B-1/B-2 visitor visas
- F-1 and M-1 student visas
- J-1 exchange visitor visas
- H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, L-1, O-1 and other work-visa categories
- Dependent visas (H-4, L-2, F-2, etc.)
It does not apply to:
- Travelers using the Visa Waiver Program with an approved ESTA (no visa is issued, so there’s nothing to attach the fee to)
- Immigrant visa (green card) applicants — the fee is specific to nonimmigrant visa issuance
- Applicants who are refused a visa — the fee is only charged once a consular officer actually approves the case and a visa is about to be issued
When and how it’s collected
This is the detail that trips people up: the Visa Integrity Fee is not paid alongside your DS-160 fee when you schedule your interview. It is collected at the point of visa issuance — after your interview, after the consular officer approves your case, and before the visa is physically placed in your passport. Some posts collect it as a separate payment at the visa collection window; expect the exact logistics to vary somewhat by embassy while posts roll out the process.
The fee is set to increase annually based on the Consumer Price Index, starting from fiscal year 2026, so $250 is very likely to drift upward in future years rather than staying fixed.
The “reimbursement” question — read this carefully
The law’s stated intent is to let compliant travelers get the $250 back: if you depart the US on or before your authorized stay ends, or you timely obtain an extension of stay or a change/adjustment of status within your visa’s validity, you’re theoretically eligible for reimbursement. That’s the policy rationale behind calling it an “integrity” fee rather than a flat surcharge.
In practice, as of this writing there is no finalized, publicly documented process for actually claiming that reimbursement — no form, no online portal, no processing-time estimate. Multiple immigration-law summaries tracking the rollout describe the credit-back mechanism as unresolved. Until the State Department or USCIS publishes concrete refund procedures, plan and budget as though the $250 is a straightforward added cost of getting a US visa, and treat any refund as a possible bonus rather than something to count on.
How it fits into your total visa cost
The Visa Integrity Fee stacks on top of your normal costs:
- The nonimmigrant visa application (MRV) fee — commonly $185 for most visa categories, with higher fees for certain petition-based work visas
- Any applicable visa issuance/reciprocity fee, which varies by nationality and visa type
- SEVIS fee for F-1/M-1/J-1 applicants
- The new $250 Visa Integrity Fee
For a full category-by-category breakdown of what you’ll pay before the integrity fee is added, see our US Visa Fees 2026 cost breakdown. If you’re filling out your application now, our DS-160 form guide walks through the online application step by step, and our US visa processing times guide covers how long the whole process typically takes at different posts.
What to actually do about it
- Add $250 per applicant to your visa budget for every nonimmigrant visa issued in fiscal year 2026, including for dependents applying alongside you.
- Bring a payment method you know the post accepts — don’t assume you can pay by the same method you used for the MRV fee; some posts have separate cashier or payment-window procedures for fees collected at issuance.
- Keep every receipt. If a working reimbursement process is published later, you’ll want documentation of exactly what you paid and when.
- Check your specific embassy’s website shortly before your interview, since consular posts are still standardizing exactly how and where the fee is collected.
This is general preparation guidance, not legal advice — visa fee rules can change with little notice, so confirm the current fee amount and collection process on your visa category’s travel.state.gov page or with your local US embassy or consulate before you travel to your interview.
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