If you have an asylum application pending with USCIS, there is an important deadline you cannot afford to miss. As of May 29, 2026, USCIS will reject a pending Form I-589 if the applicant fails to pay the Annual Asylum Fee (AAF) on time. This change comes from an interim final rule published on April 29, 2026, implementing fee provisions from the 2025 reconciliation law.
Here is how the fees work. New asylum filings carry a one-time $100 filing fee (for Forms I-589 filed on or after July 22, 2025). Separately, the Annual Asylum Fee is a recurring charge of $102 for fiscal year 2026 — a small inflation adjustment to the $100 base amount — that is owed for each year an application remains pending. The fee is charged once per application: a family of four included on a single Form I-589 owes $102, not $408. The AAF must be paid online, and there is no fee waiver available.
Who owes the AAF? Generally, anyone who filed a Form I-589 after October 1, 2024 that has been pending with USCIS for 365 days must pay the fee on the one-year anniversary of filing and each year afterward that the case remains pending. The fee does not appear to apply to people who have already been granted asylum.
You do not have to track this on your own — USCIS will send an individualized notice telling you the amount, the due date, and how to pay. Once that notice is issued, you have 30 days to pay.
The consequences of missing the deadline are serious. If the fee is not paid within 30 days of the notice, USCIS will reject the pending asylum application. Any work permit (EAD) based on that asylum application will be denied or terminated — meaning someone who is currently authorized to work could lose that authorization immediately — and for an applicant without other lawful status, USCIS may begin removal proceedings. USCIS also keeps the I-589 filing fee even when it rejects the application.
A few practical steps can protect you: keep your mailing address current with USCIS, check your USCIS online account regularly (some applicants have reported never receiving a notice and learning of the deadline only by checking online), and pay promptly once the fee comes due. If your case has been transferred to immigration court, the payment process is different.
If you have a pending asylum case and are unsure whether this fee applies to you, when it is due, or how to pay it, contact The Anwari Law Firm and we will set up a call to walk you through it.
Posted in: Immigration
posted on: June 29, 2026