USCIS Reminds Asylum Applicants to Pay Annual Fee or Face Consequences
· Telemundo McAllen (KTLM)
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that asylum applicants who fail to pay the annual fee will have their applications rejected. In a statement on its website, USCIS explained that 'in an effort to comply with the legal mandate requiring the Department of Homeland Security to enforce the annual fee payment, the interim final rule establishes that if a foreign national does not pay the annual fee within 30 days of notification, USCIS will reject their pending asylum application. If the foreign national does not have legal status in the United States, USCIS will also initiate removal proceedings.' The Department of Homeland Security implemented the annual fee for asylum applicants last year as a way to increase revenue to support immigration operations.