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U.S. Visas > Immigrate > The Immigrant Visa Process > Submit a Petition > Pay Fees > NVC Fee Payment FAQs
General
Can fees be paid through a bank abroad?
Can fees be paid with personal check or credit card?
What do I do if CEAC does not allow me to pay fees online?
Affidavit of Support (AOS) Fee
Is there only one AOS fee per case or does every applicant on the case need to pay one?
Can the AOS fee bill be paid be the applicant?
Can the AOS and IV fee be paid together (on one bill)?
I paid the AOS fee for one case; do I have to pay the same fee for my other cases?
Who is not required to pay the AOS fee?
Is there a fee to review the Affidavit of Support at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad?
Immigrant Visa (IV) Fee
Who has to pay the Immigrant Visa (IV) Application Processing Fee?
Online Payment
Will I need a user account and password?
How will the transaction appear on my bank statement?
What payment systems are used?
Is making an online payment secure?
My internet connection failed in the middle of my transaction, what do I do?
I paid the fees but the status isn’t showing as “Paid.” Do I need to repay?
Can the Affidavit of Support (AOS) Fee or IV Application Processing Fee be paid at the U.S. Embassy/Consulate instead of submitting fees to the NVC?
No, fees must be paid to NVC using the online using CEAC. Do NOT attempt to make payments by mail. If you cannot pay online, please send a screenshot to NVC by using the Public Inquiry Form for assistance.
Can fees be paid through a bank abroad?
No, all payments must be made in U.S. dollars drawn on a U.S. bank.
Can fees be paid with personal check or credit card?
No, NVC cannot accept personal checks or credit card payments.
What do I do if CEAC does not allow me to pay fees online?
Please send a screenshot to NVC by using the Public Inquiry Form for assistance. Do NOT attempt to make payments by mail.
Is there only one AOS fee per case or does every applicant on the case need to pay one?
There is only one AOS fee charged per case.
Can the AOS fee bill be paid be the applicant?
Yes, anyone with the login information can log into CEAC and pay the AOS fee.
Can the AOS and IV fee be paid together (on one bill)?
Yes, the AOS and IV fees can both be paid online. However, the online payment system will require you to pay them separately, so there will be two transactions from your bank account.
I paid the AOS fee for one case; do I have to pay the same fee for my other cases?
You must pay the Affidavit of Support fee for each case unless you are petitioning for your spouse and/or child(ren) and submit your Affidavit of Support for each case to the NVC at the same time.
The following categories of immigrants are required to pay the AOS fee:
Whos is not required to pay the AOS fee?
If you are not required to submit an Affidavit of Support form, you do not need to pay an AOS fee. For a list of scenarios that do not need to submit an Affidavit of Support form and do not need to pay an AOS fee, please visit https://nvc.state.gov/aos. The most common exemptions are for applicants with 40 quarters of creditable employment under the SSA and for applicants who will immediately gain U.S. citizenship upon entry to the U.S. under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000.
Note: Failure to pay an AOS fee when required will delay your case.
Is there a fee to review the Affidavit of Support at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad?
No, when the Form I-130 petition and subsequent Affidavit of Support (AOS) form is filed outside the United States, a fee is not charged.
Who has to pay the Immigrant Visa (IV) Application Processing Fee?
Each applicant intending to immigrate to the United States must pay the IV fee.
Will I need a user account and password?
You will need the following information from the fee letter that you received from NVC:
You will also need your bank's routing number and your checking (or savings) account number. For checking accounts this information is available at the bottom of one of your checks.
How will the transaction appear on my bank statement?
Affidavit of Support Fee payments will appear as NVC AOS FEE. Immigrant Visa Fee payments will appear as NVC IV FEE. If you are not sure what a particular payment is, contact your financial institution. They can help identify the payment history.
What payment systems are used?
All online AOS and IV payments are processed by the Department of Treasury through the Immigrant Visa Invoice Payment Center.
Is making an online payment secure?
Yes, the Department of State uses 128-bit SSL encryption to protect your transaction information while you are logged into the Immigrant Visa Invoice Payment Center. No routing or account number information is stored on the Department of State’s servers.
My internet connection failed in the middle of my transaction, what do I do?
If the problem occurred before you entered your payment information, you can close your browser, log back in, and try again. If you submitted your payment information and then experienced a problem, contact the National Visa Center before trying again by using the Public Inquiry Form.
I paid the fees but the status isn’t showing as “Paid.” Do I need to repay?
Once you submit your bank account information, there will be a delay while the bank processes your payment request. This typically takes two to three business days. During that time, your status will show as “In Process.” Once the bank confirms your payment, your status will change to “Paid.” You will then be able to open and complete the Form DS-260 Immigrant Visa Application.
Will I get an online receipt or confirmation e-mail when I make my payment online, so that I know the payment was successfully completed?
The Department of State will not automatically send you notification that your payment was successfully completed; however, you can print or e-mail a receipt in CEAC once you make your payment.