IRISH PEOPLE APPLYING for a visa to visit the US for the purposes of employment or study will be subject to a new ‘Visa Integrity Fee’ that is to be brought in by US President Donald Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’.

The proposed fee of $250 dollars will be levied alongside visitors’ other visa related costs. It is reported to take effect from 1 October.

Globally, the fee will apply to almost all nonimmigrant visa categories: tourist and business visas, work visas, student, and exchange.

Irish nationals, however, are among a list of countries that will mainly avoid this cost. Ireland is a designated Visa Waiver Program country – essentially a country where visas are not required for the majority of nonimmigrant travel to the US.

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables most citizens or nationals of participating countries to travel to the US for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa.

Travellers from VWP countries must have a valid Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) approval prior to travel and meet certain requirements: mainly the reason for travel and not having been either a national, resident, or visitor to a list of named countries.

Travel for the purposes of employment, credited study, permanent residence, or work as a journalist or in media is not permitted under the VWP and requires a visa that will be subject to the new fee. The J1 visa will also have this additional cost when implemented.

A spokesperson for the US Embassy in Dublin said in a statement to The Journal, “The Trump Administration is committed to protecting our nation and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process.

“Congress enacted the Visa Integrity Fee as part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” to support the administration’s priorities of strengthening immigration enforcement, deterring visa overstays, and funding border security.

“The Department of Homeland Security is charged with implementing this fee. Any updates to fees will be posted to our visa information page at travel.state.gov.”