As a result of the confusion regarding the USCIS Filing Fees increase, some residency applications filed recently were rejected by poorly trained USCIS personnel, who mistakenly believed the new filing fees had gone into effect.
The USCIS was scheduled to substantially increase fees on October 2nd, but was prevented from doing so by a federal court, just days before the increase was set to take effect.
Many rejection notices erroneously included a schedule of the new filing fees which were never in fact formally increased. For those who have received rejected application forms, such as form I-765 applications for employment authorization (work permit) or form I-131 application for advance parole (travel permit) with green rejection notices and the new filing fees schedule, you can resend the application(s) back to the USCIS in order for them to be properly filed.
Make sure to download a copy of the current, unchanged USCIS filing fees and USCIS fees notice that the fees have not increased and write a short note explaining that you attached the correct fees to your application because the filing fees have not increased and the I-765 and I-131 fees were included in the $1,225 I-485 filing fee.
You should attach a copy of your I-485 receipt (showing the fees were paid), along with a copy of the biographic page of your passport and two passport photos. Place the green rejection sheet on the top of your package and staple everything together after copying.
If the case was family-based, send to the mailing address for the National Benefits Center. If employment-based, send to USCIS Phoenix or Dallas Lockbox, based on where you live. Be sure to send to the USCIS using USPS Priority or Express Mail or Fed-ex/UPS, never, ever use Certified Mail!
You can get links to download the current USCIS Filing Fees and USCIS announcement that the fees have not increased, as well as links to the filing addresses by visiting our enewsletter site at: www.americanimmigrationcentral.com
** Contributions to this Column are made by Attorney Caroly Pedersen, Esq. of the American Immigration Law Center
