2.4 - Filing Fees 

(a) Where Paid – The EOIR Payment Portal must be used to pay the filing fees listed in the “Filing Type” drop-down menu on the Portal’s webpage.  

(b) When required – A list of motions, appeals, and applications before the immigration court that require a fee, along with the associated fees, are listed on the Types of Appeals, Motions, and Required Fees and Forms webpages.  Where a filing fee is required, the fee must be paid in advance, and the fee receipt must be submitted with the filing.     

Filing fees should not be confused with application fees.  See subsection (i), below.

(c) When Waived

When an appeal or motion normally requires a filing fee, the Board has the discretion in certain limited circumstances to waive that fee upon a showing of economic hardship or incapacity.

Fee waivers are not automatic but must be requested through the filing of a Fee Waiver Request (Form EOIR-26A).  The Fee Waiver Request form must be filed along with the Notice of Appeal (Form EOIR-26) or the motion.  The form requests information about monthly income and expenses and requires the applicant to declare, under penalty of perjury, that he or she is unable to pay the fee due to personal economic hardship.  If a fee waiver request does not establish the inability to pay the required fee, the requesting party will receive a rejection notice and the appeal or motion will be returned.  However, the filer will be given 15 days to re-file the rejected appeal or motion with the fee or new fee waiver request, and any applicable filing deadline will be tolled during the 15-day cure period.  See 8 C.F.R. § 1003.8(a)(3).

Fees are not reimbursed merely because the appeal is sustained, the motion is granted, or a party withdraws the appeal or motion.

(d) Amount of Payment

Filing fee amounts for appeals and motions before the Board are on EOIR’s website and must be paid in the precise amount to EOIR through the EOIR Payment Portal.  If a fee is required, but is paid in any other amount other than the amount posted on the EOIR website at the time of filing, the filing will be rejected.  See Chapter 2.1(c)(1) (Meaning of “rejected”).

(e) Number of Payments for a Consolidated Proceeding

Only one fee should be paid in a consolidated proceeding.  See Chapter 3.10(a) (Consolidated appeals).  For example, if family members appeared in consolidated proceedings before an Immigration Judge, they need to file only one appeal and pay only one filing fee on appeal.

If the proceedings were not consolidated below by an Immigration Judge, a separate filing fee is required for each family member.  For example, if spouses filed separate claims for relief and those claims were ruled upon separately by an Immigration Judge, their appeals would have to be filed separately, with a separate fee for each.

(f) Form of Payment

When a filing fee is required for an appeal or motion filed directly with the Board, the fee must be paid electronically through the EOIR Payment Portal. 

(g) Defective or Missing Payment

If a filing fee is required for an appeal or motion but the payment receipt is not submitted, the filing will be rejected.  See Chapter 2.1(c)(1) (Meaning of “rejected”).  If a fee payment is not in the correct amount as shown on EOIR’s website at the time of filing, the filing will be rejected.  If a fee payment is uncollectible, the appeal or motion will be dismissed or denied as improperly filed.

(h) Attaching the Fee

For appeals filed with the Board, any filing fee payment receipt should be stapled to the Notice of Appeal as indicated on the form.  For motions, any fee payment receipts should be stapled to the cover sheet.  

(i) Application Fees

When a motion before the Board is based upon newly available eligibility for relief, payment of the fee for the underlying application is required with submission of the underlying application accompanying the motion.