United States: DHS Issues Interim Final Rule Further Implementing H.R. 1 Reconciliation Act of 2025
April 28, 2026
Today USCIS issued an advance copy of an interim final rule (IFR) confirming and detailing further implementation of the H.R. 1 Reconciliation Act of 2025. The H.R. 1 budget reconciliation bill was signed into law on July 4, 2025 and created new fees to be collected for several humanitarian and other immigration programs, many of which have already been implemented.
The IFR will be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register; the agency also issued a website alert detailing the IFR, stating its effective date as May 29, 2026.
The IFR includes the following:
- The Annual Asylum Fee must be paid within 30 days of notification or USCIS will reject the foreign national’s pending asylum application, as well as deny any pending employment authorization application;
- USCIS will retain the filing fee for Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, if the agency rejects the form as improperly filed, which can include rejection for lack of proper signature, lack of response to each question, and failure to pay the annual asylum fee within the 30-day fee notice deadline, among other reasons;
- USCIS is updating regulations to reflect the limiting of temporary protected status (TPS) employment authorization documents to either one year or the remaining TPS designation period, whichever is shorter. The agency had already implemented this H.R. 1 provision and provided public guidance in mid-March 2026; and
- The interim final rule establishes a minimum fee of $24 to file Form I-102, Application for Replacement/Initial Nonimmigrant Arrival-Departure Document, in addition to other required filing fees.
DHS will accept public comments on the IFR until June 29, 2026.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.
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