Rosanna Berardi, Managing Partner of Berardi Immigration Law, was recently quoted in ABC News, offering her legal perspective on a sweeping new proposal from the Department of Homeland Security that would dramatically raise the cost of applying for U.S. citizenship.
The article, DHS proposes 75% increase in fees for US citizenship paperwork, covers a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in the Federal Register on June 22, 2026. If enacted, the rule would raise the general paper filing fee for Form N-400 (the primary application used by green card holders to apply for naturalization) from $760 to $1,330, a jump of $570. Online filers would also see an 80% increase, from $710 to $1,280. The proposed rule would additionally eliminate most fee waivers and the reduced-fee option currently available to lower-income applicants. Active and former military service members would remain exempt.
The proposal is not yet in effect. A 60-day public comment period is now open, and DHS will review feedback before issuing a final rule.
At the center of the story is a deliberate policy reversal. For decades, previous administrations kept naturalization fees intentionally lower than the full cost of processing, a reflection of a long-held belief that citizenship should be encouraged, not discouraged. The Trump administration’s proposed rule signals a direct departure from that approach, arguing that applicants themselves, not the broader immigration fee structure, should bear the full cost of an increasingly intensive vetting process that includes expanded background checks, social media reviews, neighborhood checks, and enhanced “good moral character” scrutiny.
Rosanna shared her assessment of what this proposal signals about the administration’s broader immigration agenda:
“This is entirely consistent with the Trump administration’s broader message of making legal immigration harder, more expensive, and less accessible, not just illegal immigration. When you simultaneously raise fees, eliminate waivers, and add new vetting layers like neighborhood checks and expanded ‘good moral character’ scrutiny, you are not streamlining a system. You are building walls inside it.”
The stakes for real people are significant. Hundreds of thousands of lawful permanent residents file for naturalization each year. For lower-income immigrants who have followed every step of the legal process (earning their green card, completing background investigations, studying for the civics test) the elimination of fee waivers could effectively put citizenship out of reach. The proposed rule would also increase the fee to request reconsideration after a denied naturalization application, rising from $830 to $1,475, a nearly 78% increase.
USCIS is funded entirely by fee revenue, not tax dollars, which the administration cites as justification for the increase. But immigration advocates and legal experts argue that the cumulative effect of higher fees, eliminated waivers, and expanded vetting layers amounts to something more than cost recovery, it amounts to a structural barrier to legal status.
Read the full article here: https://abcnews.com/Politics/dhs-proposes-75-increase-fees-us-citizenship-paperwork/story?id=134106501
As the immigration policy landscape continues to evolve rapidly under the current administration, Berardi Immigration Law remains committed to keeping clients informed, prepared, and protected. If you have questions about your naturalization eligibility or timeline, our team is here to help you navigate every step of the process.
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