Update on the Proposed Fee increase for US Artist Visas
Update on the Proposed Fee increase for US Artist Visas
In the past couple of weeks, there has been a lot of press coverage of USCIS’s proposed fee increases as of 1/4/2023. We write today to talk about the proposal – which has extended its public comment period through 3/13/2023 – what it means to the arts, what is being done to resist its approval, and what you can do to help the effort.
What is the proposal?
The government has proposed the following changes:
The USCIS filing fee for P petitions would increase by 251% (from $460 to $1,615) and by 260% (from $460 to $1,655) for O petitions. These increases would each include a $600 surcharge to fund asylum processing.
The Premium Processing Service’s guaranteed processing time would change from 15 calendar days to 15 business days.
The total number of individuals on a single petition, including O-2 and P arts petitions, would be capped at 25 beneficiaries. This would require multiple petitions for larger ensembles, such as orchestras or ballet companies.
What does it mean to the performing arts?
There is an enormous amount of concern about this proposal. And it is incredibly unfair (and arguably unlawful!1) that the arts community is being asked to foot the bill for increased bureaucracy, when this perpetually increasingly-bureaucratic process is already unfathomably burdensome (and, again, arguably unlawful!2). Lengthening the Premium Processing time means degrading a service that recently saw a 74% fee increase3. And the 25 person cap for O-2 and P petitions massively increases the all-in cost for large ensembles, while multiplying the risk of administrative errors.
All that said, it may be worth taking a moment to dispel some misunderstandings about what this fee increase actually is:
This proposal has not yet been approved: The last time USCIS tried this, in 2019, they were blocked by a court order4. This time their proposal is also potentially legally problematic, so there is a good chance that with sufficient advocacy, this will never happen. So don’t despair; take action! What kind of action? See below!
The proposal will increase the government’s filing fee, but that was not—and will not—be the most expensive part of this process. When you read a headline that says “Foreign Musicians Would Pay 250% More For Touring Visas,” this is wildly inaccurate. For most touring artists, the exorbitant cost of obtaining a US work visa does not come from the filing fee: the high ticket items are attorney fees and the government’s expediting fee (“Premium Processing”) for processing an urgent petition quickly. Neither of these costs would be impacted by the proposed fee increase. So if you’re used to paying—all in—$5,000 for P-1 visas for your band or company, a $1,155 increase is bad, but it’s not necessarily a reason to give up on US touring.
What is being done?
There are numerous grassroots efforts forming to express concern about the impact the proposed changes will have on the live arts sector. Here at Tamizdat and CoveyLaw, we are coordinating advocacy efforts with our colleagues in the Performing Artist Visa Working Group or PAVWG5 to:
use official channels to submit the most vociferous stakeholder response possible to the proposal,
muster all available contacts in Washington D.C. to articulate the impact this bad idea will have on our already beleaguered sector, and
prepare a legal response, should the government decide to implement the changes.
Because USCIS is currently soliciting comments from stakeholders, our current focus is to work together to submit the most compelling arguments against the changes, and ensure that the broadest swath of the domestic and international arts organizations voice their concerns.
What can you do?
Right now, there are two things you can do:
You can submit your public comment online through the Federal Register by the new extended deadline of March 13, 2023. To do so, go to the Federal Register portal and click on the green “Submit a Formal Comment” tab in the upper righthand corner to begin your public comment. Among other things, you could write about how this proposed rate increase would impact you financially, if you are a presenter or agent, and/or artistically, if you are an artist who creatively relies on collaborating with foreign artists. There is also the danger of, as Kyp Malone puts it, “The siloing of culture and the fear inspired retreat to the familiar [being] the opposite of what is needed at this precarious moment. We need to be welcoming voices from around the world right now.” Please feel free to use the contents of this email in your comment. If you are in the U.S., we also recommend that you forward a copy of your comments to your U.S. senators and representatives in Washington D.C.
Please get involved with the grassroots efforts, but also please let us know you are concerned so we can keep you up to date, and enlist your help when it is needed.
Join the fight! We look forward to hearing from you!
All the best,
Matthew Covey
Executive Director, Tamizdat
Partner, CoveyLaw
Footnotes!
1 Immigration Legal Resource Center et al., v. Wolf, et al., N.D. Cal., No. 4:20-cv-05883 (2020), in which the court, in enjoining USCIS’s proposed 2019 fee increase rule, discussed the proposed rule’s possible substantive violations of the Administrative Procedure Act.
2 USCIS has historically failed to routinely process I-129 petitions within the statutorily required 14-day limit (see Section 214(c)(6)(D) of the Immigration and Nationality Act).
3 On October 19, 2020, USCIS increased the Premium Processing fee for P and O petition from $1,440 to $2,500.
4 Immigration Legal Resource Center et al., v. Wolf, et al., N.D. Cal., No. 4:20-cv-05883 (2020).
5 The PAVWG is a long-standing ad hoc coalition of the US’s major performing arts service organizations, including Tamizdat, the League of American Orchestras, the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP), Carnegie Hall, Dance/USA, Folk Alliance International, GG Arts Law, NAPAMA, National Independent Talent Organization, National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), OPERA America, Performing Arts Alliance, the Recording Academy, Theatre Communications Group, and Western Arts Alliance.