The strengthening of the Kenya shilling against the US dollar has cut the amount of money Kenyans are paying for the US visa at the US Embassy in Nairobi.

This comes after the US visa fees hit an all time high of Sh. 31,450. The fees have now come down to Sh  27,750.

Currently, the United States says that it charges USD185 for the non-petition-based nonimmigrant visa. This includes the B category of Visitor Visa (Business, Tourism, Medical treatment), category C-1 of transiting the United States, category I for media and journalists, category F for students and academics, and category M for vocational.

The USD185 fees mean that the US Embassy had rated the exchange rate at around 170 Kenya Shilling to the US dollar. Currently, with fees coming down to Sh  27,750, it appears that the embassy is placing the exchange rate at 150 to the US dollar.

This is still way higher than the official and commercial exchange rate the local currency is going for. As at Monday March 18, 2024, the Central Bank of Kenya was officially quoting the Shilling as exchanging at a rate of 134.5843 per US dollar.

Strengthening Kenya shilling inches closer to 120s against the US dollar

This exchange places the US visa fees at around Sh. 24,900, which implies that the fees could come down even further should the shilling maintain its recovery against the US dollar.