Foreign travelers face updated U.S. immigration fees beginning January 2026 under DHS inflation adjustments (Photo: Pinterest)
The United States Department of Homeland Security has just confirmed another wave of inflation based adjustments to various immigration and border-related fees, effective from January 1, 2026.
The changes are necessitated under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is wide-ranging legislation signed mid-2025 that demands annual recalculations in line with inflation.
DHS proposed rule changes affecting three major processes: the Electronic Visa Update System, the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation and parole for temporary entry without a visa.
These updates may not affect every foreign traveller, but they are a signal of the wider cost environment across U.S. entry procedures. For many Indian applicants, only the parole fee is relevant because India does not fall under the U.S. Visa Waiver Program.
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Parole, which allows a noncitizen to enter and stay in the country under limited humanitarian or public-interest circumstances, will slightly increase in fee. The required payment will rise next year from 1,000 to 1,020 dollars. The change is relatively small but still part of a pattern of incremental increases tied to inflation.
The EVUS fee, which is required for Chinese nationals holding B-1/B-2 visas to update their travel information, will increase to 30.75 dollars. The ESTA fee, which applies only to nationals of the Visa Waiver Program countries, will see an increase of 27 cents. Neither change has much direct consequence for Indian travelers, though both are part of DHS's larger system of adjusting fees.
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One of the fees remaining constant is the Form I-94 Arrival/Departure Record charge, which has maintained its price at 30 dollars. This document is usually issued electronically to most foreign visitors. The stability in this fee provides at least one constant in a shifting landscape of immigration-related costs.
The 2025 HR-1 law stipulates that DHS shall adjust these fees annually according to the Consumer Price Index. Since almost all sectors of the American economy have been affected by inflation, immigration services are no exception.
These adjustments reflect not only legal requirements but also the operational costs associated with maintaining border and travel-screening systems.
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Disclaimer: Information is based on official DHS notices and may change. Readers should verify all immigration updates through government sources before planning travel.
