The Trump administration has moved to almost double the cost of applying for US citizenship, proposing a rule in late June 2026 that would sharply raise naturalisation fees and scrap most waivers for low‑income applicants. Under the plan, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, part of the Department of Homeland Security, would lift the standard paper filing fee for citizenship to $1,330 from $760, while the online fee would rise to $1,280 from $710.
For context, the proposal follows a DHS argument that USCIS must recover the full cost of adjudicating naturalisation applications, including more extensive screening and vetting linked to President Donald Trump's executive orders. Previous administrations kept citizenship fees relatively low to encourage naturalisation and integration, but DHS now says that approach no longer fits its priorities.
