Facing a budget crunch, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is planning to raise the cost of applications. Attorneys say it could make green cards harder to obtain for working class immigrants.
The federal agency says it needs the increased fees to deal with backlogs and a budget crunchAs fewer people applied for immigration benefits, the federal agency's revenue plummeted, leading to widespread furloughs and a backlog in immigration cases.
"All of us should want migrant communities to have access to the benefits that they qualify for," Sullivan told NPR."So, I think that Congress should take notice, as far as appropriations go, in helping USCIS with additional funding." Although people are currently allowed to apply for a green card and work permit together, the proposed rule will unbundle the forms — which would, in turn, raise costs.
Generally, households that make less than 150% of the federal poverty line are eligible for discounted applications to a number of immigration benefits. That could include a single adult who makes less than $21,000 per year or a family of four that earns $45,000.benefit from fee exemptions or fee waivers each year. But some"The fee waivers are not automatic, they add more time to your case," Daniel Santiago, an attorney with Mabel Center for Immigrant Justice in Boston, told NPR.
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