People visiting the US will have to pay a $250 (£186) visa fee for the 2025 fiscal year, under Donald Trump’s new ‘One Big Beautiful Bill.’
Nearly 11 million nonimmigrant visas were issued in 2024 alone, according to a ‘Report of the Visa Office’. The new fee is expected to impact millions of tourists, international students and workers.
Trump signed the “Big Beautiful Bill” into law on July 4 2025. The bill includes measures such as cutting tax on tips and overtime and slashing Medicaid.
Here’s everything you need to know about the new visa fee:
How much is the new visa fee?
The $250 fee is “in addition” to existing fees, including regular visa fees.
“For example, an H-1B worker already paying a $205 application fee may now expect to pay a total of $455 once this fee is in place,” Steven A. Brown, a partner at immigration law firm Reddy Neumann Brown PC, wrote in a post on the firm’s website.
Are UK citizens included in the new visa fee?
The new visa fee applies to nearly all nonimmigrant visa categories: tourist and business (B-1/B-2), student (F/M), work (H-1B/H-4), and exchange visas (J).
Tourists coming from non-waiver countries including China, India, Nigeria and Brazil will have to pay the $250 fee, as well as people visiting from Africa, Latin America, South America and certain countries in Asia and the Middle East.
People visiting from Visa Waiver Program countries, which includes the UK, will not have to pay the $250 fee.
Countries included in Visa Waiver Program
- Andorra
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Brunei
- Chile
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Monaco
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Qatar
- San Marino
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
- United Kingdom
Visitors from France, Germany, Japan, and South Korea are also exempt, as well as Canadians, Bermudians and diplomats in parts of the Middle East and official visa holders.
Countries in the Visa Waiver Program can travel to the US for tourism or business for a maximum of 90 days without obtaining a visa. However, travelers must have a valid Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).
The ESTA visa fee is set to increase from $21 to $40 (£30).
What are the exemptions?
Guests who comply to Visa conditions, including not accepting unauthorised employment or overstaying their visa for more than five days, will be able to apply for a reimbursement.
However, at present, there is no specific information about how reimbursement will be issued.
“The refund process remains unclear, and immigration lawyers warn it could involve months of paperwork, delays, or even denials if technicalities aren’t followed,” Forbes reports.
Visitors “may never see that money again, depending on how the refund rules are implemented. If they breach any visa condition—even accidentally—they forfeit the refund. That results in higher financial risk and extra paperwork for otherwise simple visits.”
When will the new fee be introduced?
The new fee will be effective during the US fiscal year, which is from 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025.
