USCIS Filing Fee Examples for Real-World Scenarios

July 18, 2026

Seeing the math applied to specific situations makes the fee schedule easier to follow than a flat table. These four scenarios use the figures verified against USCIS’s official fee schedule as of July 2026 — always re-check the USCIS fee calculator or uscis.gov/g-1055 for the current amount before you actually file.

Example 1 — H-1B Petition Filed by a Qualifying Nonprofit Employer

A nonprofit research institution files Form I-129 to sponsor an H-1B worker. Nonprofit petitioners are fully exempt from the $600 Asylum Program Fee that applies to most I-129 filings:

I-129 base filing fee:              $  780.00
Asylum Program Fee (nonprofit):     $    0.00
────────────────────────────────────────────
Total government filing fee:        $  780.00

Compare that to a standard for-profit employer with more than 25 full-time-equivalent employees filing the identical petition:

I-129 base filing fee:              $  780.00
Asylum Program Fee (standard):      $  600.00
────────────────────────────────────────────
Total government filing fee:        $1,380.00

The $780 nonprofit total is the same base fee, just without the Asylum Program Fee layered on top — a $600 difference driven entirely by petitioner type, not by anything about the worker being sponsored.

Example 2 — H-1B Petition Filed by a Small Employer

A small business with 20 full-time-equivalent employees — under USCIS’s 25-FTE threshold for the small-employer rate — files the same H-1B petition:

I-129 base filing fee (small employer): $  460.00
Asylum Program Fee (small employer):    $  300.00
────────────────────────────────────────────────
Total government filing fee:            $  760.00

Both the base fee and the Asylum Program Fee drop for a qualifying small employer, landing at $760 total — roughly halfway between the nonprofit and standard-employer totals above.

Example 3 — Naturalization With an Approved Reduced Fee

An applicant with a documented household income at 250% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines — above the 150% fee-waiver cutoff, but under the 400% reduced-fee ceiling — files Form N-400 on paper with an approved Form I-942 reduced fee request:

N-400 standard paper fee:           $  760.00
N-400 reduced fee (approved):       $  380.00
────────────────────────────────────────────
Savings from reduced fee:           $  380.00

The reduced fee cuts the paper-filing cost exactly in half. Compare this against the standard online N-400 fee of $710 — the reduced fee still saves $330 versus filing online at full price, even though a reduced-fee request must go in on paper. See how to qualify for a USCIS fee waiver or reduced fee for the exact income documentation this requires.

Example 4 — Full Marriage-Based Green Card Package, Spouse Already in the US

A US citizen petitions for a spouse who is already living in the country, filing all four forms in one concurrent package: the relative petition, the adjustment of status, the work permit, and the travel document.

I-130 (Petition for Relative, online):    $  625.00
I-485 (Adjust Status):                    $1,440.00
I-765 (Work Permit, concurrent):          $  260.00
I-131 (Advance Parole, concurrent):       $  630.00
──────────────────────────────────────────────────
Total government filing fees:             $2,955.00

Filing all four together at once, rather than staggering the I-765 and I-131 after the I-485 is already pending, is what secures the $260 concurrent I-765 rate baked into this total instead of the $470–$520 standalone fee.

Example 5 — Green Card Renewal, No Other Forms Involved

A lawful permanent resident renews an expiring 10-year green card by filing Form I-90 online, with no other forms attached:

I-90 (Green Card Renewal, online):        $  415.00

This is the simplest scenario on this page — a single form, no concurrent-filing considerations, and no waiver or reduced-fee eligibility questions to work through.

Using These Examples

None of these totals include attorney fees, medical exam costs, or translation fees — see how to budget for a multi-form green card filing package for the non-government costs to add on top. For your own case, run your specific combination of forms through the USCIS fee calculator rather than assuming one of these examples matches exactly — small differences in petitioner size, filing method, or income can shift the total significantly.