This morning I received an advanced copy of USCIS proposed fee increases. The notice will become official on November 14th. For the second time in a row, USCIS proposes increasing their fees an average of 21%.

Below are some of the proposed fee changes:

	Current Fee	Proposed Fee	Change
K-1	$535.00	$520.00	($15.00)
I-130	$535.00	$555.00	$20.00
AOS Packet	$1,760.00	$2,750.00	$990.00
I-485	$1,140.00	$1,120.00	($20.00)
I-751	$595.00	$760.00	$165.00
N-400	$640.00	$1,170.00	$530.00
I-526	$3,675.00	$4,015.00	$340.00
E-2	$460.00	$705.00	$245.00
I-601 A	$630.00	$960.00	$330.00
I-765	$410.00	$490.00	$80.00

USCIS Policy Manual Update
USCIS is revising policy guidance for the validity period of Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record.

The updated policy, which goes into effect on Nov. 1, 2018, will require applicants to submit a Form I-693 that is signed by a civil surgeon no more than 60 days before filing the underlying application for an immigration benefit. The Form I-693 would remain valid for a two-year period following the date the civil surgeon signed it. As such, USCIS is retaining the current maximum two-year validity period of Form I-693, but calculating it in a different manner to both enhance operational efficiencies and reduce the number of requests to applicants for an updated Form I-693.

USCIS officers use Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, to determine whether an applicant for an immigration benefit in the United States is inadmissible under the health-related grounds of inadmissibility. By specifying that the Form I-693 must be signed no more than 60 days before the applicant files the underlying application for which Form I-693 is required, the validity of the form is more closely tied to the timing of the underlying application.

Additionally, requiring submission of a Form I-693 that was signed no more than 60 days before the date the underlying application was filed may, in some cases, maximize the period of time Form I-693 will be valid while the underlying application is under USCIS review. Officers will still have the discretion, as they have always had, to request a new Form I-693 if they have reason to believe an applicant may be inadmissible on the health-related grounds. Delays in adjudicating the underlying application will also be reduced if fewer requests for updated Forms I-693 are necessary.