- Immigration court and Board of Immigration Appeals fees rise by $20 to $50 for filings on or after October 1, 2026.
- An appeal of an immigration judge decision goes to $1,060 and Form EOIR-42B cancellation of removal to $1,690.
- DHS has not yet announced FY2027 H.R. 1 fees, so the $100 asylum fee and $102 annual asylum fee stay in force for now.
Filing fees at U.S. immigration courts and the Board of Immigration Appeals go up on Thursday, October 1, 2026. A final rule from the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), published August 21, raises every fee set by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act by 3.4 percent for fiscal year 2027. An appeal of an immigration judge’s decision will cost $1,060, up from $1,030, and an application for cancellation of removal for non-permanent residents will cost $1,690, up $50.
The increases run from $20 to $50 per filing. The new amounts apply to any appeal, motion or application filed with an immigration court or the Board on or after October 1. EOIR says it will keep rejecting filings that arrive without the correct fee or a fee waiver request. Anything filed by Wednesday, September 30, still pays the current amount.
Free toolUSCIS Receipt Number DecoderThe change is automatic. H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, created new immigration court fees and requires the Attorney General to adjust them every year using the change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) from July to July. Between July 2025 and July 2026, that index rose 3.4 percent. The rule does not touch EOIR’s older base fees under section 286(m) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and it makes no change to fee waivers or exceptions.
The Department of Homeland Security has not yet adjusted its own H.R. 1 fees for FY2027. Those include the asylum application fee, the annual asylum fee, work permit fees for asylum seekers, parolees and TPS holders, and the parole fee. Last year DHS announced its adjustments in November 2025 and applied them from January 1, 2026, so for now those fees stay at FY2026 levels.
What Changes on October 1
The rule, “Inflation Adjustment for EOIR OBBBA Fees; Fiscal Year 2027” (Federal Register document 2026-17146), updates the fee tables in 8 CFR 1103.7 for appeals, motions to reopen or reconsider, and three applications for relief from removal. EOIR issued it without a comment period. The department called the change “purely ministerial” because the statute dictates both the formula and the timing.
Payment rules set earlier this year still apply. Since an interim final rule took effect on June 11, 2026, the EOIR Payment Portal is the only accepted way to pay, fees are generally non-refundable whatever the outcome, and paying a fee does not by itself file the appeal, motion or application.
The New Immigration Court Fees: FY2026 vs FY2027
Each EOIR fee has two parts: an older base fee under INA section 286(m), which does not change, and the H.R. 1 fee, which rises with inflation. The table shows the total you pay for each filing, not counting any biometrics fee. FY2026 amounts have applied since February 1, 2026, when EOIR’s previous inflation adjustment took effect.
The biggest dollar increase is on Form EOIR-42B, the cancellation application many long-term undocumented residents file in removal proceedings, which rises $50 to $1,690. The most expensive filing remains the Form EOIR-45 disciplinary appeal at $2,070, a fee paid by attorneys and representatives rather than immigrants. Even a motion to reopen tied to fee-free relief now costs $950: its base fee is zero, but the H.R. 1 portion still applies.
How the 3.4 Percent Increase Was Calculated
H.R. 1 sets the formula, and EOIR has no discretion over it. Each fee’s H.R. 1 portion from the fiscal year just ended is multiplied by the percentage rise in CPI-U from July of the prior year to the July before the new fee takes effect. The result is added to the old fee and rounded down to the nearest $10. The annual asylum fee is the one exception; it rounds down to the nearest dollar.
Rounding down is why the increases look uneven. The H.R. 1 portion of an appeal fee was $920; 3.4 percent of that is $31.28, which rounds down to $30. The EOIR-42B portion was $1,540; 3.4 percent is $52.36, which becomes $50. The EOIR-40 and EOIR-42A portion was $610; 3.4 percent is $20.74, which becomes $20. The disciplinary appeal portion of $1,355 produced $46.07 and a $40 increase.
The process repeats every year. Fees set this way will rise again on October 1, 2027, by whatever the July 2027 CPI-U figure shows. VisaVerge covered a similar annual reset for CBP customs user fees for FY2027, which also follows inflation.
Who Pays What in Immigration Court
Most people in removal proceedings will meet at least one of these fees. The amount depends on what you file and whether it can be waived. The table below maps common situations to the fee that applies from October 1.
Two points catch people out. First, the asylum amounts are DHS fees. EOIR collects them for cases in court but does not set them, and they will change only when DHS publishes its FY2027 adjustment. Second, since June 11, 2026, you must pay the fee for every application you file. The old rule that let someone filing several applications pay only the most expensive one was removed because H.R. 1 requires a fee for each listed application.
Biometrics fees, where DHS requires them, are charged on top of these totals. The asylum fees have also been contested in court. EOIR stopped collecting the FY2025 annual asylum fee from July 5 to September 30, 2025 during litigation in Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project v. USCIS, and USCIS paused its annual-fee notices under an October 30, 2025 court order. DHS then codified both asylum fees in an interim final rule effective May 29, 2026, which we explained in DHS Tightens Annual Asylum Fee Rule, Putting Form I-589 and C8 EADs at Risk.
Fee Waivers and Filings That Cost Nothing
The FY2027 rule leaves waiver rules exactly as they were. An immigration judge may waive the fee for a motion or an application for relief if the filer shows they cannot pay. The request must include a signed affidavit or an unsworn declaration under penalty of perjury (28 U.S.C. 1746) explaining the inability to pay. Appeals to the Board may likewise be filed with a fee waiver request instead of payment.
If a judge denies the waiver, the filing is not treated as properly filed, but the judge must give 15 days to re-file with the fee or a new waiver request, and the filing deadline is paused during that period. There is no waiver for the asylum application fee or the annual asylum fee: both “cannot be waived or reduced” under the regulations.
Some filings carry no fee at all under EOIR’s rules:
- Custody bond appeals to the Board.
- A motion filed while an appeal or another motion is already pending.
- A motion asking only for a stay of removal, deportation or exclusion.
- A motion to reopen an in absentia removal order filed under INA section 240(b)(5)(C)(ii).
- Motions agreed to by all parties and filed jointly.
- Any appeal or motion filed by DHS.
The DHS Side: H.R. 1 Fees Still at FY2026 Levels
H.R. 1 fees charged by USCIS and CBP also rise with inflation, but DHS runs its own schedule. For FY2026, CBP published its notice on November 19, 2025 and USCIS on November 21, 2025, and both took effect on January 1, 2026. As of September 26, 2026, the Federal Register shows no FY2027 adjustment from DHS, so the amounts below remain in force.
DHS’s formula uses the same July-to-July CPI-U change that produced EOIR’s 3.4 percent. Because most DHS fees also round down to the next lowest $10, small fees can end up unchanged; last year the $100 asylum fee and the $250 Special Immigrant Juvenile fee did not move at all. The renewal EAD fee for asylum applicants is fixed at $275 because H.R. 1 provides no inflation adjustment for it. For how work permit categories and fees fit together, see our Form I-765 work permit explainer.
What to Do Before October 1
The savings from filing early are small, $20 to $50, and never worth a rushed or incomplete filing. The larger risk comes after October 1, when a filing sent with last year’s amount can be rejected and a missed deadline can cost you the case. Immigration courts are under heavy load; the courts in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware alone issued a record 2,100 deportation orders in June, so appeal and motion deadlines are running for many people right now.
If you have a lawyer or an accredited representative, confirm who is paying and when. The rule applies the FY2027 amounts to filings made on or after October 1, so a fee paid at the old rate on September 30 for a filing that reaches the court on October 1 risks coming up short. Ask your representative to pay and file in the same session.
What Comes Next
The next fee change to watch is DHS’s FY2027 inflation notice for the H.R. 1 fees in the table above. Based on last year’s timing it could come in November, with a January start date, but DHS has not announced either. Several other fee proposals are also moving through the Federal Register. DHS proposed on June 23, 2026 to change the fees for Forms N-400 and N-336 and to end the reduced N-400 fee and fee waivers for both forms. ICE proposed on May 20, 2026 to raise a fee for certain people ordered removed in absentia.
October 1 is also the start of fiscal year 2027 across the immigration system, the same reset that renews annual green card limits and that the still-unpublished October 2026 Visa Bulletin is meant to reflect. VisaVerge will update this article when DHS publishes its FY2027 fee amounts.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to appeal an immigration judge decision in 2026?
For filings on or after October 1, 2026, Form EOIR-26, the appeal of an immigration judge decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals, costs $1,060. Appeals filed through September 30, 2026 pay the FY2026 amount of $1,030. A fee waiver request can be filed instead of payment.
When do the new EOIR fees take effect?
The FY2027 EOIR fees apply to any appeal, motion or application filed with an immigration court or the Board of Immigration Appeals on or after October 1, 2026. The Justice Department published the final rule on August 21, 2026 as Federal Register document 2026-17146.
What is the fee for Form EOIR-42B cancellation of removal?
Form EOIR-42B, cancellation of removal and adjustment of status for certain non-permanent residents, costs $1,690 for filings on or after October 1, 2026, up $50 from $1,640. Any biometrics fee is extra. An immigration judge may waive the fee if the applicant shows inability to pay.
Why are immigration court fees going up?
H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed July 4, 2025, requires the Attorney General to adjust its immigration court fees every year for inflation. The FY2027 adjustment uses the 3.4 percent rise in CPI-U from July 2025 to July 2026, rounded down to the nearest $10.
Can immigration court fees be waived?
Yes, for most motions and applications. An immigration judge may waive a fee if the filer shows inability to pay with a signed affidavit or unsworn declaration, and Board appeals may be filed with a waiver request. The asylum application fee and the annual asylum fee cannot be waived or reduced.
How much is the asylum fee in immigration court?
The Form I-589 asylum application fee is $100 and the annual asylum fee is $102 for each calendar year a case stays pending. These are DHS fees that EOIR collects in court. DHS has not announced FY2027 amounts, so these FY2026 figures still apply.
How do I pay immigration court fees?
Since June 11, 2026, the EOIR Payment Portal is the only accepted payment method for immigration court and Board of Immigration Appeals fees. Fees are generally non-refundable, and paying a fee does not by itself file the appeal, motion or application.
Has DHS announced FY2027 fees for asylum, parole and TPS work permits?
Not as of September 26, 2026. The FY2026 DHS amounts, such as $560 for an initial asylum, parole or TPS work permit and the $1,020 parole fee, remain in effect. Last year DHS announced adjustments in November 2025 and applied them from January 1, 2026.
