US Hikes Visa Fee

Jun 01, 2002

THE US government has increased charges for non-immigrant visa at all its embassies effective today.

By Geoffrey KamaliTHE US government has increased charges for non-immigrant visa at all its embassies effective today.The fees, initially at US$45 (sh81,000), have been raised by US$20 (sh36,000) to US$65 (sh117,000). A variety of other services, including immigrant visas and US citizen services will also go up, a press statement by the American Centre in Kampala said yesterday. US citizen services include passports and birth abroad certificates.The increase follows a study in October 2001, which indicated that most current fees for visas and consular services no longer recover the costs of the services. “This US$20 increase is the first cost increase for non-immigrant visas since 1998,” the statement said.Since 1994, the State Department has always collected a non-immigrant visa application processing fee to cover administrative costs for applications but no charge for approved visas.Ends

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