MANILA, Philippines — If you’re a Filipino and is scheduled to fly to the United States in the foreseeable future, you might need to include an extra $250 (P14, 371) on top of your other expenses after US President Donald Trump signed into law that affects fees immigrants and visitors need to pay upon enterting the country.
Trump signed into law last July 4, or the American Independence Day celebrations, the “Big Beautiful Bill.”
The bill tackled issues that would affect Americans, such as tax cuts and its state health program, Medicaid. But while Americans would have to deal with these changes, foreign tourists aspiring to enter their shores would also be affected due to a certain provision.
The Visa Integrity Fee requires tourists or “any alien issued a non-immigrant visa at the time of issuance” to pay $250. The US Department of Homeland Security is in charge of the implementation of the fee as reported in Time. It can also not be waived or reduced and will be adjusted in future years for inflation.
Tourists, business travelers, temporary workers and students fall under the non-immigrant visa categories. Business/Tourist, Student, Exchange Visitor, and Journalist/Media visas are priced at $185 (P10,625).
Filipinos who travel to the US typically spend for visa applications, travel costs and travel insurance on top of the accommodation, food and transport expenses.
Exemptions are given to citizens who are part of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), which enables most citizens from said countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa.
These include citizens mostly from European countries, New Zealand and Australia. Asian countries under the VWP include Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that the new law “provides the necessary policies and resources to restore integrity in our nation’s immigration system.” It added that it requires “cross-agency coordination before implementation.
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