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US travel fees will rise under the Trump administration’s One Big Beautiful Bill, with ESTA fees doubling to $40 and new charges for land borders and China.
The Alliance Air flight suffered a technical glitch mid-air. (Representative Image)
Travellers to the US from some of its closest allies will soon face increased fees under the Trump administration’s proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Specifically, a hike to the fees associated with the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation, which processes travel applications from residents of more than 40 countries that are part of the Visa Waiver Program.
The list of countries includes the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, and much of Europe, along with a few others from different regions, such as Qatar in the Middle East.
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Before the passage of President Trump’s signature legislation, applicants to the ESTA system, as it’s known, paid $21. Now that the mandatory fee will nearly double on September 30 to $40, CNN reported.
This is among several fee hikes tied to international travel to the US. Those entering through land borders will also face higher charges, as the cost of the I-94 Arrival/Departure Record is set to rise from the current $6 to $30 by the end of the month.
Lastly, travellers from China will be asked to pay a $30 enrollment fee for the Electronic Visa Update System. The September 30 effective date for the fee increases was outlined in a recent notice in the Federal Register.
The fee hikes, along with the upcoming $250 “visa integrity fee” for many travellers from non–Visa waiver countries, come at a time when international travel to the US is experiencing a significant downturn.
According to CNN, many Canadians and other international travellers are avoiding trips to the US. In May, the World Travel and Tourism Council estimated that the country will lose $12.5 billion in international visitor spending in 2025. Out of 184 economies analysed by the council, a global tourism advocacy group, the US was the only one projected to experience a decline this year.
The new visa integrity fee has not yet been applied. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security repeated to CNN that it “requires cross-agency coordination before implementation.”
Houston-based immigration lawyer Steven Brown said he doesn’t believe the fee hikes will pose much of a “hindrance” for most travellers. However, he noted that the visa integrity fee is a completely new measure.
“It will be intriguing to see because lots of questions are out there,” he told CNN Travel. “So we pay the fee, but how does it get refunded? Who is tracking compliance? How do you prove compliance?”
United States of America (USA)
September 06, 2025, 17:06 IST
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