A reminder to readers that beginning this week, dozens of application fees have gone up, with some going up as much as three times the prior amount. Hispanic news organization Telemundo reported in a story, that the new fees will leave many immigrants facing a large financial burden for legal entry.  All together, 39 fees will rise an average of 66 percent, with some of the largest increases being for the most basic documents immigrants seek.  Most notably, the fee to apply for a green card, establishing legal residence in the United States , will almost triple, from $395 to $1,010. Note that because of the Visa Bulletin mess, the increased fees for adjustment, employment authorization and travel documents have been delayed until the middle of this month.  

The increases are expected to raise an extra $1.1 billion a year for the UCSIS, which is required to cover its costs with the fees it collects from the hundreds of thousands who seek residency and citizenship each year.  "We need the money," USCIS Director Emilio Gonzalez said.  "To do nothing is to invite organizational disaster, because we are just not covering the cost of doing business."  

The series of fee increases have met with widespread criticism.  Some immigration activists have said that the higher fees would be a permanent obstacle for many immigrants, many of whom take minimum-wage day labor jobs paying $5.15 an hour.  They have calculated that a worker would have to save every penny he or she earned for five weeks to simply apply for a green card.  

Among the most vocal of the price hike is the National Association of Latino Elected Officials, who say will "put the dream of U.S. citizenship beyond the reach of many of our nation’s newcomers."  With regards to the USCIS’ financial woes, the organization acknowledged the fiscal challenges, but countered that "placing the full costs of these investments on the back of hardworking newcomers is driving fees to a level that immigrants simply cannot afford.  

According to the Associated Press, critics of the fee increase extend to Capitol Hill, who believe that application fees go to pay USCIS’ law enforcement, which legal applicants should not be responsible for.  Sen. Barack Obama and Rep. Luis Gutierrez, both D-Ill., have introduced legislation to lessen the burden by shifting application fees to the federal budget.  Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., chairman of the Judiciary subcommittee on immigration, first criticized the fee hikes in January, saying they would "price the American dream out of reach for qualified immigrants."  

The criticism extends beyond activists and politicians; business groups are expressing concern over the pricing policy.  Last month the Trucking Industry Defense Association particularly had issue over the higher fees for waivers allowing foreigners with criminal records into the country on business.  According to their statement, at $545, the new fee will sharply raise costs for commercial cross-border trucking and shipping and that these costs would inevitably be passed on to consumers.  

In a related development, Representative Zoe Lofgren, the Democratic Chair of the House Immigration Subcommittee introduced a bill to reverse the increase.