US Visa Costs Go Up: Getting a US visa just got pricier. The current administration has added a new visa integrity fee of $250 (about Rs 21,546) for all non-immigrant visa categories, meaning a $185 (about Rs 15,944) increase over the existing charge. This fee sits within the recently approved One Big Beautiful Act in Congress and kicks in with the next fiscal year. Under the new rule, applicants who follow the visa rules and return home on time will get the extra fee back. The change hits all nations, including India, where people travel to the US for study, work, or tourism. The new charge raises the cost for families and students. At the same time, the US economy may also feel the pinch if the higher price turns some travellers away.The U.S. issues two kinds of visas for foreign visitors. The first, the non-immigrant visa, is meant for temporary stays—travel, study, business meetings, or short-term work. The second, the immigrant visa, grants the right to live in the U.S. on a permanent basis. Recently, the U.S. raised the application fee for non-immigrant visas. The B-1/B-2 visa covers tourism, business meetings, and medical care. The F-1 visa is for academic study, the H-1B is for skilled workers, the J-1 is for various exchange programs, and the H-2A and H-2B allow for temporary agricultural and non-agricultural job placements, respectively. The immigrant visa, in contrast, is for those seeking to settle permanently. A family-based immigrant visa lets U.S. citizens and permanent residents sponsor relatives living abroad. Employment-based immigrant visas stem from job offers, investment in a business, or for people with special skills. Additionally, the Diversity Visa Program offers 55,000 visas each year via a random lottery to ensure a mix of immigrants from countries with low U.S. immigration rates.For US visa assistance, the best point of contact is the US Embassy in India. You can visit the embassy’s official visa page at https://in.usembassy.gov/visas/in.usembassy.gov. If you need to track the status of your visa application, go to https://ceac.state.gov/CEAC/. Should you have specific questions, you can email support-india@usvisascheduling.com, where the team is ready to help with any visa-related inquiries.
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