DOS raises MRV fee from $65 to $100 effective November 1, 2002

On October 9, 2002 the Department of State (DOS) published a rule that raises the fee for the processing of an application for a nonimmigrant visa (machine-readable visa fee, or "MRV") or a combined nonimmigrant visa and border crossing card (BCC) from $65 to $100. The fee hike is effective November 1, 2002. [67 Fed.Reg. 62884 (October 9, 2002)]

DOS justifies raising the fee as an emergency measure to ensure that sufficient resources are available to meet the costs of processing nonimmigrant visas, the demand for which has dropped at the same time that the processing of nonimmigrant visa applications has become more labor intensive because of the increased security screening of visa applicants in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. This rule further corrects the item listed as the ‘‘border crossing card’’ for minors under age 15 by deleting reference to a 5-year period of validity. AMDOC#: 200210002