Citizenship Application Fees in the U.S.

In the fiscal year 2017, there were over 707,000 immigrants that got naturalized. Naturalization is an essential process to go through for any immigrant who wishes to become a U.S. citizen. In November 2019, the Trump Administration came with the proposal to increase the naturalization cost. As a result, it increased by more than 80% of the previous fee. How much is the citizenship application fee, though? This article will give you some insight.

How Much Does It Cost to Become a U.S. Citizen?

If you want to become a U.S. citizen, there are various fees that you should consider. There is a $640 fee for the processing of your application, and then you have to pay $85 for biometrics services. In total, the naturalization fee for your U.S. citizenship application will cost as much as $725.

You need to keep in mind that you will not be refunded for any of the included fees. No matter if your application is approved or rejected, the money will not be given back. The only thing that you can do is have the fees decreased, or completely waived. Even this is not possible for all applicants, though.

U.S. Citizenship Costs by Applicant Type

What you need to know is that your citizenship application fee will have a certain cost depending on what type of applicant you are. For example, if you are 75 years old or more, then you will not have to deal with the biometrics fee. At the same time, if you are someone who applies based on your military service, you will not have to deal with any fee – neither the biometrics fee nor the application filing fee.

Anyone who isn’t in any of these categories will have to pay both of these fees, at least as long as you are not suitable for an income-based fee reduction or waiver.

Naturalization Fees

Payment Options

If you want to become naturalized, before you pay the citizenship application fee, you will have to submit Form N-400. This form is the Application for Naturalization. Once you submit it, you will have the responsibility to pay the fee. The only thing to be very careful at is the change in fees. Sometimes, the fees may change, so before you file Form N-400, make sure you have enough funds to deal with the naturalization costs.

Luckily, USCIS is understanding and knows that in some circumstances, an applicant may be unable to pay a certain fee for a service. If you have evidence that you are not able to deal with that particular fee, USCIS may waive the filing fee and it will be easier to apply.

The paying method that you can use depends on where you submit your application in the first place. If you file the form online, the fee can be paid online as well. But this is not the only available one.

That being said, if you submit your application through the mail, you have other options. You can either pay through a personal check, a money order, or a cashier’s check. You can also do it through a credit card, by using Form G-1450. This is the Authorization for Credit Card Transactions.

There are a few things that you must keep in mind before you pay, though. For instance:

• Submitting more than one application for U.S. citizenship will require you to pay for all of them through a single paying method.
• You must complete all sections of Form G-1450 if you want to pay by credit card. Once you do this, the form has to be signed and then placed on top of your Form N-400.
• If you don’t pay in exact amounts, USCIS will not accept your application for naturalization. The money will be sent back, and you will have to deal with the whole submitting process once again, and then pay the exact amount.
• Only one method of payment will be accepted for your application, not more. To be more specific, you will not be able to pay by combining two or more of all the methods available.
• When paying by cashier’s check, personal check or money order, you shouldn’t abbreviate the name of the Department as “DHS” or “USDHS”. Instead, it is required to spell out the “U.S. Department of Homeland Security” as the payee.

If you’re someone who isn’t in the U.S. at the moment and wants to pay through the personal check, cashier’s check or money order method, you need specific instructions. To get these, what you have to do is contact the United States consulate or embassy near your area.

Waivers and Other Fee Reductions

Sometimes, you may be unable to pay the citizen application fee in full. You may become desperate, but luckily, there are some things you can do to deal with this situation. You can obtain a fee waiver or reduction, but only if you apply for it and can prove that you don’t have any means to pay it at the moment.

Furthermore, if you want to be eligible for a fee reduction, you need to make sure that you have an income that equals between 150% and 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.

U.S. Contiguous States and Territories Residents

Hawaii Residents

Alaska Residents

Determining Household Size

There are a few things that come into determining the size of your household. In essence, there are several individuals that you need to count to determine the size, respectively:

• The head of the household (if it’s not you)
• Yourself
• All of the potential family members that live in the same household and depend on your income; these could be:

o   Your parents

o   Legal wards or unmarried children who have developmental or physical disabilities or are mentally impaired

o   Legal wards or unmarried children between 21 and 24 years of age who are full-time students and live with you when they are not attending classes

o   Legal wards and unmarried children below 21 years of age

o  Anyone else other than the listed members that depend on your income or the income of the household’s head or your spouse

• Your spouse who lives in the same house as you

Fee Waiver

You have the possibility of applying for a fee waiver and having your citizenship application fee reduced. But to do that, you need to show evidence of your inability to afford the filing fee.

To make this possible, you will have to prove that:

• You are currently dealing with hardship in your financial life, such as being unemployed or having to pay huge medical expenses
• You have an annual household income that is less than 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines
• You are someone who is currently receiving public assistance benefits; these could include Medicaid, as well as Supplemental Security Income, aka SSI

Before you are granted the waiver, you will have to file Form I-912. This form is known as the Request for Fee Waiver. Keep in mind that you will have to submit it together with Form N-400. That being said, do not think of submitting the Request for Fee Waiver if you’ve already submitted your Form N-400 beforehand. With this application, it is necessary to have the supporting documentation that proves the fact that you cannot afford the application fee for naturalization. It isn’t necessary to submit any fees associated with your N-400 Form.

If you are lucky enough and the application is approved, then you will have your biometrics fee and application filing fee waived. As a result, you will not have to pay anything.

Conclusion

Before you are naturalized and become an official citizen of the United States, it’s important to know what fees are involved in the process. Otherwise, you risk not having enough cash for your application, and you might not be able to become a citizen. In some cases, though, you can have your fee reduced or waived, but only if you can prove you have a financial difficulty for specific reasons. In the end, if you want to know more about becoming a citizen of the U.S., you will find more information on the Stilt website.

Frank Gogol

I’m a firm believer that information is the key to financial freedom. On the Stilt Blog, I write about the complex topics — like finance, immigration, and technology — to help immigrants make the most of their lives in the U.S. Our content and brand have been featured in Forbes, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and more.

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