Protecting Asylum Integrity Act

Congress makes the following findings:

(1) The Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) expressly authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to prescribe and collect fees for the processing of immigration applications, benefits, and claims, including through the Immigration Examinations Fee Account established under section 286(m) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(m)).

(2) The credible fear interview required under section 235(b)(1) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)) is a statutorily mandated component of the expedited removal process and serves as the threshold step for individuals seeking to pursue asylum or other protection claims.

(3) Credible fear screenings impose substantial administrative, personnel, and operational costs on U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of Homeland Security, including costs relating to officer time, interpreter services, detention support, and downstream processing of positive determinations.

(4) A reasonable user fee for credible fear processing—

(A) is consistent with longstanding congressional policy of recovering costs associated with immigration claims processing;

(B) promotes fiscal responsibility;

(C) deters the filing of frivolous or meritless claims; and

(D) generates revenue that can be used to support border security and immigration enforcement activities.

(5) The imposition of such a fee is a budgetary measure that will increase Federal revenues.

Section 235(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall assess and collect a fee of not less than $100 for each credible fear interview conducted under this paragraph. Such fee shall be collected before such interview is conducted.

The amount of the fee under clause (i) shall be adjusted annually, beginning in fiscal year 2027, for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in the same manner as civil monetary penalties are adjusted under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–410; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note).

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 50 percent of the fees collected under this subparagraph shall be deposited into the Immigration Examinations Fee Account established under section 286(m) and shall be available to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, without further appropriation, for processing and operations. The remaining 50 percent of such fees collected shall be deposited into the general fund of the Treasury.