US Proposes 75-80% Hike in Citizenship Application Fees, Affecting Thousands of Indians

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proposed a significant increase in filing fees for naturalization applications, which could substantially raise the cost of acquiring US citizenship for permanent residents, including thousands of Indians eligible to apply each year.

Under the proposal, the fee for Form N-400, the primary application used by green card holders seeking US citizenship, would increase to $1,330 for paper filings (from $760, a 75% increase) and to $1,280 for online filings (from $710, an approximately 80% increase). Additionally, the proposal eliminates the reduced-fee option for lower-income applicants and scraps fee waivers altogether for naturalization filings. Currently, certain applicants with limited financial means can seek either a fee reduction or a complete waiver.

The proposal comes as Indians remain among the largest groups acquiring US citizenship. According to DHS statistics, 65,960 Indians obtained US citizenship in FY 2022, 59,100 in FY 2023, and 49,700 in FY 2024. India was the second-largest source country for new American citizens in FY 2024, despite a decline from the previous two years.

DHS also proposes raising the fee for Form N-336 (Request for a Hearing on a Decision in Naturalization Proceedings) to $1,475 for paper submissions (from $830) and $1,425 for online filings (from $780). The increases aim to better align filing fees with the agency’s processing and adjudication costs. The public will have 60 days to comment before a final rule is implemented.