There are various fees charged in H-1B applications including government filing fees, attorney fees and OIA service fees. Most must be paid by the employer; please review the list below for details. All government filing fees should be on separate checks, all made out to “Department of Homeland Security."
| Download the Recharge Fee structure for OIA visa services |  |
| Fee Type | Amount | Notes |
| UC Merced Service Fee | $750 | For initial and extension petitions for H-1B status |
| UC Merced Service Fee for Dependents | $550 | For initial petitions for H-4 dependents |
| UC Merced Service Fee for Dependents - Extensions | $550 | For extension petitions for H-4 dependents |
| UC Merced Expedite Processing Fee | $350 | Applies when complete request is received under OIA suggested timelines. |
| Legal Fees - initial | $1,800-$2,800 | For initial H-1B petitions depending on immigration counsel. |
| Legal Fees - extensions | $900-$2,100 | For extension H-1B petitions depending on immigration counsel. |
| Legal Fees - Dependent Spouse | $750 | Form completing Form I-539 if dependents are inside the U.S. (fee can be paid by foreign national or UC Merced directly to Attorney) |
| Legal Fee - Dependent Child | $750 | Form completing Form I-539 if dependents are inside the U.S. (fee can be paid by foreign national or UC Merced directly to Attorney) |
| I-129 Petition for Non Immigrant Worker (USCIS filing fee) | $460 | Also know as the H-1B petition fee. Must be paid by employer. |
| USCIS Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee | $500 | This is a one-time fee. This fee is required for any foreign national seeking H-1B status with UC Merced for the first time, even if they are already in the U.S. in H-1B status with another employer. This fee must be paid by the employer. Fee is not required for H-1B extensions. |
| I-907 Premium Processing (USCIS filing fee) | $2,805 | Expedited processing in which USICS will adjudicate an application within 15 business days. Most often not necessary with H-1B extensions or porting cases. This fee may be paid by the scholar only if it is a personal request of the foreign national and unrelated to employment needs. Additionally it must be demonstrated that paying the fee will not put the foreign nationals annual income below the prevailing wage (see Prevailing Wage). |
| I-539 Application to Extend/ Change Non-Immigrant Status (USCIS filing fee) | $470 | Dependent application for H-4 status for any amount of family members (spouse and children under 21 years of age). This fee may be paid by the department or the foreign national who are already in the United States and need to change or extend non-immigrant status. |
