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ICE will propose a regulation to adjust fees that the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) charges individuals and organizations to improve compliance and enforcement related to nonimmigrant students. ICE has determined that increasing the fees is necessary to recover the full cost of current activities and planned enhancements of the Student and Exchange Visitor Program and add specialized personnel to conduct necessary compliance monitoring and implement SEVIS adaptations. The SEVP fee schedule was last adjusted in a rule published on May 23, 2019.

Statement of Need:

ICE has identified additional includable costs associated with oversight and enforcement that would better ensure the integrity of SEVP. The fee adjustment would recover the full cost of current activities and planned enhancements of SEVP and add specialized personnel to conduct necessary compliance monitoring and implement SEVIS adaptations. 

Summary of the Legal Basis:

The Secretary is specifically authorized to collect fees for SEVP from prospective F and M students and J exchange visitors, subject to certain limits for certain J-1 nonimmigrants. See 8 U.S.C. 1372(e)(1). The Secretary is authorized to periodically revise those fees, with certain exceptions, to account for changes in the overall cost of carrying out the program. See, e.g., IIRIRA section 641(e)(4)(A), (g)(2), 8 U.S.C. 1372(e)(4)(A), (g)(2). Similarly, section 286(m) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1356(m), authorizes the Secretary to collect fees for adjudication and naturalization services at a level that would ensure recovery of the full costs of providing such services, including the costs of providing similar services without charge to asylum applicants and certain other immigrants. Pursuant to INA section 286(m), the level that is set may include recovery of any additional costs associated with the administration of the fees collected. 

Anticipated Costs and Benefits:

ICE is in the process of assessing the impacts of this rule. The rule would increase the fee for nonimmigrants students and result in an increase in fee transfers from nonimmigrant students to ICE. The increased fees would generate the necessary revenue to cover SEVP costs, improve ICE’s compliance monitoring and oversight efforts in relation to SEVP and its practical training programs, enable SEVP to implement new regulatory requirements, and ensure maintenance of ongoing operations.