EB-1C costs: every fee from the first form to the green card

If you're planning a green card through EB-1C, you want a number for your budget. The good news: government fees in this category are modest and clearly set. There's no labor market test with the Department of Labor, so none of the effort that comes with it. The less convenient news: the total depends on how many of you there are, whether you change status in the US or immigrate through the consulate, and whether you pay for speed.

This guide lists every fee under the USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055, edition of October 16, 2026) and the State Department fee schedule, adds them up for a family and shows which costs aren't fees but come up anyway. For how the process runs step by step, see the guide Process and documents; for an overview of the category, see the guide to the EB-1C green card. Fees for our own services are on the service pages, not here.

1Two stages, two bills

The EB-1C comes in two steps. First, the US company that wants to employ you files the petition on Form I-140. It is the petitioner, so the fees at this stage are its to pay. A labor market test, known as Labor Certification, is not required for this category under 8 CFR 204.5(j)(5). The employer does, however, have to present a job offer that clearly describes your duties as a manager or executive.

Once the petition is filed or approved, the second stage begins. If you're already in the US, for example on an L-1A, you can apply for adjustment of status on Form I-485. If you're abroad, you apply for the immigrant visa at the consulate. Each stage has its own fees, and in the second, every family member pays separately. According to USCIS, spouses and unmarried children under 21 can come with you, in categories E-14 and E-15.

Every amount in this guide is a fee set by a government agency. What an attorney, translator or doctor charges is freely agreed and covered in the section on costs that aren't fees.

2The petition: I-140 and Asylum Program Fee

For the I-140, USCIS charges $715 on paper or $665 when filed through an online account. On top of that comes the Asylum Program Fee, which accompanies every I-140. It is normally $600. Small employers pay $300, nonprofits nothing.

2.1When your subsidiary counts as a small employer

Under 8 CFR 106.1, a small employer is a company with no more than 25 full-time equivalent employees in the US, counting affiliates and subsidiaries. Only US staff count. So a US subsidiary with eight employees whose parent company in Europe employs 400 people can pay the reduced fee, as long as the group doesn't exceed 25 full-time equivalents in the US. Whether the reduction applies follows from two questions on Form I-140: the one on nonprofit research and the one on the number of full-time employees. If you skip these and pay the full $600, USCIS will accept it.

How small and young subsidiaries clear the other EB-1C hurdles, from a year of doing business to staffing, is covered in the guide EB-1C for small and new US subsidiaries.

2.2Paper or online

The fee schedule says it plainly: online is often $50 cheaper. With the I-140, though, there's a catch. If you file the petition together with a Premium Processing request, USCIS guidance says you must file by mail. If you file online first and want to speed things up later, you can submit the Premium Processing request for the pending petition afterward.

3Premium Processing: $2,965 for 45 business days

For EB-1C petitions, listed by USCIS as category E13, the employer can request Premium Processing on Form I-907. The fee is $2,965, on top of all other fees. In return, USCIS commits to a decision within 45 business days. If it misses that, it refunds the Premium Processing fee.

Two caveats belong in every budget. If USCIS asks for more evidence with a Request for Evidence, or issues a notice of intent to deny, the clock stops and restarts once your response arrives. And Premium Processing only covers the I-140. It doesn't speed up adjustment of status on Form I-485 or the consular interview. How long each step takes without it is covered in the guide EB-1C processing time and Premium Processing.

Whether it's worth it depends on your situation. If you're on an L-1A and approaching the seven-year limit, Premium Processing mainly buys you certainty about whether the petition holds up. If you're in no hurry, you can save the money.

4Adjustment of status in the US: I-485 and related applications

If you live in the US and adjust status, the I-485 costs $1,440 on paper or $1,390 online for every person aged 14 or older. Children under 14 whose application is filed together with a parent's pay $950 on paper or $900 online. For a family with two children, the I-485 is the biggest single item.

Two related applications are optional:

• Work permit (I-765): $260 if your I-485 was filed with a fee on or after April 1, 2024 and is still pending. With a valid L-1A you keep working for your employer anyway, and spouses on L-2 may work on their status. The work permit is then a safeguard, not a must.
• Advance Parole (I-131): $630 on paper or $580 online, as a travel document during the process. If you travel on a valid L-1 visa and return to the same employer, you don't abandon your application under 8 CFR 245.2(a)(4)(ii)(C). More in the guide From L-1A to EB-1C green card.

USCIS charges no fee for the medical exam on Form I-693. The Civil Surgeon, a USCIS-designated doctor, does bill their own fee, though. An affidavit of support on Form I-864 also carries no fee and is only needed for EB-1C if a relative with US status files the petition or owns at least 5 percent of the petitioning company.

5Immigrant visa at the consulate

If you immigrate from your home country in Europe instead of changing status in the US, you don't pay for an I-485. Instead, there are two fees per person. The State Department charges a processing fee of $345 per person for employment-based immigrant visas, set in the Schedule of Fees for Consular Services, 22 CFR 22.1. Once the visa is issued, each person pays the USCIS Immigrant Fee of $235, which covers processing the visa packet and producing the green card.

USCIS recommends paying the Immigrant Fee online after you pick up your visa and before you travel. A family member, the employer or the attorney can also pay it, using the A-Number and the State Department case ID. You can also pay after arrival, but the green card only comes once the fee is paid.

Then there's the exam with the panel physician, the doctor designated by the consulate. Here too, the doctor sets the price. The consular route is much cheaper in government fees, but it means travel, an interview and waiting for an appointment.

6Worked example: a family with two children

Take a managing director, married, with a son aged 16 and a daughter aged 10. The US company files the I-140 on paper and pays the full Asylum Program Fee. The table below works through both routes, government fees only.

With adjustment of status in the US, the family pays $1,315 for the petition, $1,440 each for three Form I-485 applications and $950 for the daughter. That comes to $6,585, or $9,550 with Premium Processing. Via the consulate, it's the $1,315 for the petition plus four times $345 and four times $235, totaling $3,635, or $6,600 with Premium Processing. If the US company is a small employer, each total drops by $300.

If you apply for a work permit and Advance Parole for all four people when adjusting status, add up to $3,560. It's rarely necessary for everyone: if you work on an L-1A or L-2 and travel on a valid visa, you often need neither. It pays to decide person by person.

7Costs that aren't fees

If you're honest with the numbers, government fees are the smaller part of the bill. These items belong in the budget too:

• Attorney: The petition, with its job description, org chart and evidence, is usually prepared by an immigration attorney. Attorney fees are freely negotiated. Our own prices are listed on our service pages.
• Translations: Under 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3), every foreign-language document needs a full English translation, with the translator certifying that it is complete and accurate and that they are competent to translate. Company register extracts, shareholder lists, employment contracts and references quickly add up to a lot of pages.
• The US company's financials: From the day of filing, the company has to show it can pay your salary, using a tax return, annual report or audited financial statements. An audit costs money; a clean tax return and orderly payroll are required anyway.
• The salary itself: The EB-1C rules set no minimum salary. But the salary offered has to be paid, and it should fit the role described.
• The L-1 alongside: If you wait in the US on an L-1A, you have to maintain that status until your green card arrives. Extensions carry their own fees, listed in our guide L-1 costs and fees.
• Travel and appointments: The biometrics appointment and, if required, an interview at the USCIS office, or the trip to the consulate with the whole family.

8When you pay and what happens if you're denied

Each fee is due with the form it belongs to, and the fee rules are strict: if the fee is wrong, USCIS rejects the filing. Paper filers usually pay by credit card (Form G-1450) or by bank debit (Form G-1650); checks or money orders are only accepted under an exemption via Form G-1651. What matters for the EB-1C: your priority date, meaning your place in line, is only set once the complete, signed petition with the correct fee has been properly filed. So a wrong fee costs you not just money but time.

As a rule, fees are not refunded, whatever the outcome and however long the process takes. That's set out in 8 CFR 103.2(a)(1). The only firm exception in this process is Premium Processing, if USCIS misses its deadline. If the petition is denied, the money for the I-140 and the Asylum Program Fee is gone, and a new filing costs the same again. Our guide EB-1C denied or RFE shows which issues most often lead to requests for evidence and denials. The best investment is a petition that holds up the first time.

In short

• The petition costs $715 on paper or $665 online, plus the Asylum Program Fee of $600, or $300 with no more than 25 full-time equivalents in the US.
• Premium Processing costs $2,965 and requires USCIS to decide the I-140 within 45 business days. It only speeds up the petition.
• If you adjust status in the US, the I-485 costs $1,440 per person aged 14 and over, and $950 for younger children filing with a parent.
• Going through the consulate costs $345 in visa fees and $235 in USCIS Immigrant Fee per person.
• For a family with two children, government fees alone run between $3,635 and $9,550, depending on route and speed.

How we help you

• Visa RoadmapIn writing: which visa fits you and your family, prepared with the immigration attorney on the firm's team.
• Visa Roadmap for Company FormationFormation and visa in one plan, so the company carries the visa.
• Visa and Green Card ConsultationWhich route to the USA fits you, settled in one conversation.
• PayrollPayroll, payroll taxes and filings for your employees in the USA.