All U.S nonimmigrant visa applicants will now be required to cough up a refundable security fee of USD250. This is equivalent to Sh32,300 at an exchange rate of 129.2439 to the US dollar.
According to US Immigration Lawyer at The Law Offices of Spar & Bernstein Brad Bernstein, the new requirement shall come into effect starting October 1.
“You now have to pay a $250 refundable visa security deposit to visit the United States starting October 1, 2025. This is because the United States government has concluded that too many people are overstaying on their visas, This new fee is meant to hold travelers accountable,” he says.
Bernstein explains that visa applicants including visitors (B1/B2 visa), students (F/M), and workers (H-1B/H-4) applicants shall pay this amount upfront when applying for their visas. If they are granted a visa and visit the United States then leave without violating any of the U.S immigration laws, then they will receive their deposit back.
“If you overstay your visa or violate your visa, you will now have forfeited the amount of $250 that you paid as your security deposit,” says Bernstein.
This amount shall be paid in addition to all the current visa application visas. The current fees for a U.S B1/B2 visa application is around $185 which translates to about Sh23,910. As a result, visa applicants will now have to part with as much as Sh56,210 when applying for a U.S nonimmigrant visa.
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The visa fees will vary from country to country. For instance, visa applicants from non-waiver countries such as India, China, Brazil and Nigeria will have to pay this security deposit. Nearly all applicants from Africa, Latin America, Middle East, and South America will also have to pay just like applicants from a select few Asian countries.
However, applicants from countries within the visa waiver program including United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Germany, France, Canada and Bermudians will not be required to pay.
