According to HR-1, all foreign nationals whose asylum application is pending must pay the annual fee called the Annual Asylum Fee (AAF).
Cost
In 2026, the AAF is $102. Each fiscal year, this amount will be reviewed and may increase in line with inflation.
Can payment be avoided?
No. This fee is mandatory and cannot be waived using Form I-912.
When to pay
If your asylum application has been pending for more than one year, the immigration judge may collect the annual fee at any time.
An immigration judge may collect the Annual Asylum Fee if your application has already been pending for one year. When the judge decides to collect this fee from you, the judge must issue a written order with a deadline. Sometimes this deadline may be very short - only 1 day. Regularly check your mail, email, and any immigration court online accounts for an order.
You may decide not to wait for a notice and pay the fee in advance.
Clear instructions have still not been provided. Many instructions contradict each other.
If you filed I-589 after October 1, 2024, most likely you will need to pay the AAF on the anniversary of the filing of your form.
Example: filing date - April 12, 2025. AAF payment date - April 12, 2026, and then every year on April 12.
If you have already received a notice from the judge, then you need to pay every year according to the date in the notice.
Bottom line: no one can state with certainty exactly when you need to pay the fee. The instructions are contradictory.
You may choose one of the options:
- Pay on the anniversary of filing Form I-589.
- Wait for a payment notice from the court.
- Pay in advance - currently the most reliable option.
In the I-GUIDE case tracker, you can choose a date and receive reminders about the need for annual payment. You can also go to the fee payment page from there.
How to pay
Payment is made on this website:
https://epay.eoir.justice.gov/index
- Enter the A-number.
- Select the correct category from the list.
- Go to the payment page.
- Save the payment receipt.
- Send a copy of the receipt to the court and the government attorney.
If you are filing I-589 for the first time, select:
Court - I-589, Application for Asylum (Initial)
If you are paying the annual fee, select:
Annual Asylum Fee (AAF) - Pending Application for Asylum
What to do after payment
Save the payment confirmation.
If you have an attorney, the attorney only needs to upload a copy of the receipt in the ECAS system. A copy does not need to be sent to the government attorney.
If you do not have an attorney, then after payment you need to print and send a copy of the payment receipt to the court and the government attorney.
You can find the court address here:
https://acis.eoir.justice.gov/en/
The government attorney’s address is here:
https://www.ice.gov/contact/field-offices?office=12#
You need to send to the court:
- Proof of Service
- Cover Page
- Payment receipt.
You need to send to the government attorney:
- Cover Page
- Payment receipt.
Proof of payment must be provided within 45 days, unless another deadline is stated in the notice.
What should you do if the website glitches?
Do not pay a second time. If the pop-up window with payment confirmation does not appear, contact ECAS technical support by phone at 1-877-388-3842 or by email at ECAS.technicalsupport@usdoj.gov to confirm whether your payment was successfully processed.
What should you do if you lost the payment receipt?
If you did not save a copy of the receipt, you can access it later by entering your A-number and payment tracking ID on this receipt page.
If you do not know your payment tracking ID, you can access it within 20 days after making the payment by returning to this payment page, entering your A-number, and again selecting “Court - Form I-589, Annual Asylum Fee for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal (AAF)” as the filing type. You can also contact ECAS technical support by phone at 1-877-388-3842 or by email at ECAS.techsupport@usdoj.gov.
If more than 20 days have passed, it is recommended to contact the court and ask for the payment tracking ID.
Do you need to pay for each family member or only for one person?
The fee must be paid only once per year for one case, not for each family member.
What if separate I-589 forms were filed for each family member in court?
If your cases are consolidated, you still pay only once. If you are in different jurisdictions - USCIS, court, or detention - or your cases are not consolidated, then you pay for each case separately.
However, it is known that some judges require separate I-589 forms for each family member and payment of the fee for each form.
How can you know whether the cases are consolidated?
You can ask your attorney. You can ask the court clerk. Indirect signs of a consolidated case include the same date, time, and judge for all family members.
Whose A-number should be entered?
For payment in court, you need to enter the A-number of the principal applicant - main applicant or lead.
If asylum has already been granted, do you need to pay?
No. The fee is paid only by those whose cases are still pending.
If I won, but the government attorney filed an appeal?
Yes, in that case you need to pay the AAF fee.
If the form was filed a long time ago, but the hearing was rescheduled or no date has been set yet?
You still need to pay the AAF. The fee is not connected to and does not depend on hearing dates or case rescheduling.
If the form was filed both with USCIS and in court?
You need to pay the fee only in court. USCIS should close your form because it cannot review it if you are in immigration court proceedings.
If the case was administratively closed in court and sent to USCIS?
Then your form is pending with USCIS, and you need to wait for a payment notice from them for the AAF.
I previously paid the Annual Asylum Fee another way. What can I do?
If you previously tried to pay the Annual Asylum Fee to the immigration court another way, for example by paying the initial fee, the government says it will credit these advance payments to your account. However, the government has not explained how this process will work or who can rely on it. You can try to follow the instructions above to provide a copy of the receipt to the immigration court.
If you already paid the Annual Asylum Fee to USCIS, and your asylum case was later transferred to immigration court, you can try to explain to the judge that you already paid the fee. You can send a copy of the USCIS receipt to the immigration court together with a letter explaining what happened, and bring a copy of the receipt to your hearing.
Sources: H.R. 1, 8 CFR § 1103.7, PM 25-36 memorandum, EOIR instructions.
Disclaimer: The information provided here is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Translations are provided for convenience and may contain errors or omissions. For guidance on your specific situation, always consult official sources or a qualified attorney.
