As flagged in late-December Federal Register notices, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has increased a series of immigration-benefit filing fees effective 1 January 2026. The majority of changes are modest—typically $10 for Employment Authorization Document (EAD) filings—but any package post-marked today without the correct fee will be rejected outright.
Key increases include: Initial asylum-applicant EADs rise to US$560, parole-based EADs to US$560, and Temporary Protected Status applications to US$510. Renewal EADs also creep up. While the asylum application fee itself remains $100 (currently stayed by litigation), employers sponsoring humanitarian parole staff will see total costs climb.
![USCIS inflation adjustment raises EAD and TPS filing fees from today]()
Indian nationals rarely file for TPS, yet the EAD fee hikes matter because many F-1 STEM OPT students and H-4 dependants rely on EADs to remain work-eligible. Immigration counsel advise HR teams to budget an extra 2–3 percent per case and to double-check cashier’s cheques before dispatching petitions via courier.
The adjustment is based on CPI-U inflation between July 2024 and July 2025 and will now occur annually, meaning mobility budgets must include a standing buffer. Failure to keep pace risks work-authorisation gaps, project delays, or payroll compliance breaches if an employee falls out of status while a rejected application is re-filed.
Companies may mitigate exposure by filing renewals at the earliest 180-day window and by using premium courier services with real-time delivery confirmation to prove timely filing.
Key increases include: Initial asylum-applicant EADs rise to US$560, parole-based EADs to US$560, and Temporary Protected Status applications to US$510. Renewal EADs also creep up. While the asylum application fee itself remains $100 (currently stayed by litigation), employers sponsoring humanitarian parole staff will see total costs climb.
Indian nationals rarely file for TPS, yet the EAD fee hikes matter because many F-1 STEM OPT students and H-4 dependants rely on EADs to remain work-eligible. Immigration counsel advise HR teams to budget an extra 2–3 percent per case and to double-check cashier’s cheques before dispatching petitions via courier.
The adjustment is based on CPI-U inflation between July 2024 and July 2025 and will now occur annually, meaning mobility budgets must include a standing buffer. Failure to keep pace risks work-authorisation gaps, project delays, or payroll compliance breaches if an employee falls out of status while a rejected application is re-filed.
Companies may mitigate exposure by filing renewals at the earliest 180-day window and by using premium courier services with real-time delivery confirmation to prove timely filing.
Source: Economic Times
