October 23, 2025
The federal administration recently implemented a significant increase in cost for incoming international travelers: I-94 permits have increased from $6 to $30 (per person, valid for six months), and a new ‘visa integrity fee’ will add $250 to new visa applications. These changes hinder our local and national tourism industry and economy, especially as the U.S. and Southern California prepare to host global events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympics. For these reasons, the Chamber and regional partners submitted a coalition letter to our congressional delegation urging their leadership to:
- Maintain the current I-94 fee permit fee at a low cost
- Expand the 25-mile border zone threshold in California, reducing the need to process I-94 permits when visiting our region
- Modernize the I-94 activation process to digitalize the process 100%
- Eliminate or reduce the “visa integrity fee”
Since this letter has been sent, the federal administration has paused the visa integration fee while
they continue to assess its implementation process – a temporary win for tourism. These efforts would safeguard and promote economic growth across the United States and our border region.
In addition to these recent changes, President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation to restructure the H-1B visa program that allows high-skilled foreign professionals to work in the U.S. The proclamation announced a new application fee of $100,000 per application, grants the Department of Homeland Security authority to determine case-by-case or industry-wide exemptions to the fee, and creates Project Firewall, which would prioritize American workers and hold employers accountable of any H-1B visa abuse. Industries that highly benefit from H-1B visas include healthcare, higher education and research, finance and business services, and engineering and manufacturing, hurting some of our high industries that are core to our national and local economy. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has filed a legal challenge to the federal administration arguing that the fee is unlawful as it overrides provisions under the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Chamber will continue to monitor federal policies that disproportionately burden our border communities and negatively affect our local, state, and national economies.