Visa application fees
Q: I heard that the price for a visa is going to increase at the United States Embassy in Kingston. Is this true?
A: Starting April 13, 2012, US visa application processing fees will be adjusted in all countries, not only in Jamaica. Many visa application processing fees — including all immigrant visa application processing fees — will be reduced. While most nonimmigrant visa processing fees will increase, others will decrease.
By law, the US Department of State is required to recover the cost of processing visas through the collection of visa application processing fees. These fees are re-examined on a regular basis to ensure that they accurately reflect the cost of providing visa services. A variety of factors — such as an increase in the number of visas processed or new regulations requiring additional security screenings – can cause the cost of visa processing to increase. The US government does not seek to earn a profit from visa processing; as a result, many visa fees will decrease on April 13, 2012.
Immediate relative and family preference immigrant visa processing fees will be reduced worldwide from US$330to US$230. Employment-based immigrant visa processing fees will fall from US$720 to US$405.
Application processing fees for tourist, business, transit, crew member, student, exchange visitor and journalist nonimmigrant visa applications will increase from US$140 to US$160. Fees for petition-based nonimmigrant visas — such as seasonal worker visas and performer visas — will increase from US$150 to US$190. Fiance(e) visa application processing fees will decrease from US$350 to US$240.
A complete list of the new fees can be found on the US Embassy Kingston’s website, https://kingston.usembassy.gov.
Application processing fees are not refunded if a visa application is denied. These fees represent the cost of processing each application, whether or not the application is approved. For individuals holding Jamaican or Caymanian passports, there is not a separate issuance fee for approved visa applications.
The processing fee changes are applicable for all payments made on April 13, 2012 or later. For fees that are increasing, receipts for payment made prior to April 13 will be accepted for 90 days after the fee takes effect, or through July 12. If you have already paid for an appointment that is scheduled for April 13 or later, you will not be entitled to a refund if the application processing fee is scheduled to decrease.
For more information about visas, please visit our website, https://https://kingston.usembassy.gov/.
Reminder for US Citizens
The 2012 election season is underway in the United States. To register to vote from abroad or to sign up to receive state-specific election alerts, visit fvap.gov. You may drop off your voting materials with postage affixed at the US Embassy in Kingston or at the US Consular Agencies in Montego Bay and the Cayman Islands for delivery to the United States.
The American Embassy staff in Kingston will answer any questions you may have regarding US consular law, regulations and/or practice. In order to respect the privacy of applicants, the embassy will not answer questions on specific personal applications.
Send your questions to: editorial@jamaicaobserver.com and we will send them to the embassy.