Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 51247 

and importers must label and package 

all schedule II–V controlled substances 

in accordance with 21 CFR part 1302, 

the requirement to label and package all 

controlled substances containing 

suvorexant in accordance with 21 CFR 

part 1302 would not impose a 

significant economic burden upon DEAregistered manufacturers, distributors, 

and importers as the infrastructure and 

materials for doing so would already be 

in place. Accordingly, compliance with 

21 CFR part 1302 would not require 

significant additional manpower, capital 

investment, or recordkeeping burdens. 

Because of these facts, this final rule 

will not result in a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

In accordance with the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) of 1995 

(2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.), the DEA has 

determined and certifies pursuant to 

UMRA that this action would not result 

in any Federal mandate that may result 

‘‘in the expenditure by State, local, and 

tribal governments, in the aggregate, or 

by the private sector, of $100,000,000 or 

more (adjusted for inflation) in any one 

year . . . .’’ Therefore, neither a Small 

Government Agency Plan nor any other 

action is required under provisions of 

UMRA of 1995. 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

This action does not impose a new 

collection of information requirement 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995. 44 U.S.C. 3501–3521. This action 

would not impose recordkeeping or 

reporting requirements on State or local 

governments, individuals, businesses, or 

organizations. An agency may not 

conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 

required to respond to, a collection of 

information unless it displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

Congressional Review Act 

This rule is not a major rule as 

defined by section 804 of the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (Congressional 

Review Act (CRA)). This rule will not 

result in: an annual effect on the 

economy of $100,000,000 or more; a 

major increase in costs or prices for 

consumers, individual industries, 

Federal, State, or local government 

agencies, or geographic regions; or 

significant adverse effects on 

competition, employment, investment, 

productivity, innovation, or on the 

ability of United States-based 

companies to compete with foreignbased companies in domestic and 

export markets. However, pursuant to 

the CRA, the DEA has submitted a copy 

of this final rule to both Houses of 

Congress and to the Comptroller 

General. 

List of Subjects in 21 CFR Part 1308 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Drug traffic control, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

For the reasons set out above, the DEA 

amends 21 CFR part 1308 as follows: 

PART 1308—SCHEDULES OF 

CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES 

■ 1. The authority citation for 21 CFR 

part 1308 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 811, 812, 871(b), 

unless otherwise noted. 

■ 2. Amend § 1308.14 by redesignating 

paragraphs (c)(49) through (c)(54) as 

(c)(50) through (c)(55) and adding new 

paragraph (c)(49) to read as follows: 

§ 1308.14 Schedule IV. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(49) Suvorexant 2223 

* * * * * 

Dated: August 21, 2014. 

Thomas M. Harrigan, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2014–20515 Filed 8–27–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4410–09–P 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

22 CFR Part 22 

[Public Notice: 8850] 

RIN 1400–AD47 

Schedule of Fees for Consular 

Services, Department of State and 

Overseas Embassies and 

Consulates—Visa and Citizenship 

Services Fee Changes 

AGENCY: Department of State. 

ACTION: Interim final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Department of State 

amends the Schedule of Fees for 

Consular Services (Schedule) for certain 

nonimmigrant visa application 

processing fees, certain immigrant visa 

application processing and special visa 

services fees, and certain citizenship 

services fees. More specifically, the rule 

amends the application processing fees 

for two categories of petition-based 

nonimmigrant visas and the tiered 

application processing fees for 

immigrant visas. The rule also amends 

the security surcharge for immigrant 

visa services and the fees for certain 

immigrant visa services. Lastly, the rule 

raises the application processing fee for 

renunciation of U.S. citizenship and 

lowers the hourly consular officer time 

charge. The Department of State is 

adjusting the fees in light of the findings 

of a recent Cost of Service study to 

ensure that the fees for consular services 

better align with the costs of providing 

those services. 

DATES: This interim final rule becomes 

effective September 6, 2014. Written 

comments must be received on or before 

October 21, 2014. 

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may 

submit comments to the Department by 

any of the following methods: 

• Visit the Regulations.gov Web site 

at: http://www.regulations.gov and 

search the RIN 1400–AD47or docket 

number DOS–2014–0016. 

• Mail (paper, disk, or CD–ROM): U.S. 

Department of State, Office of the 

Comptroller, Bureau of Consular Affairs 

(CA/C), SA–17 8th Floor, Washington, 

DC 20522–1707. 

• E-Mail: fees@state.gov. You must 

include the RIN (1400–AD47) in the 

subject line of your message. 

• All comments should include the 

commenter’s name, the organization the 

commenter represents, if applicable, 

and the commenter’s address. If the 

Department is unable to read your 

comment for any reason, and cannot 

contact you for clarification, the 

Department may not be able to consider 

your comment. After the conclusion of 

the comment period, the Department 

will publish a Final Rule (in which it 

will address relevant comments) as 

expeditiously as possible. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Celeste Scott, Special Assistant, Office 

of the Comptroller, Bureau of Consular 

Affairs, Department of State; phone: 

202–485–6681, telefax: 202–485–6826; 

Email: fees@state.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The interim final rule makes changes 

to the Schedule of Fees for Consular 

Services of the Department of State’s 

Bureau of Consular Affairs. The 

Department sets and collects its fees 

based on the concept of full cost 

recovery. The Department completed its 

most recent review of current consular 

fees and will implement several changes 

to the Schedule of Fees based on the 

new fees calculated by the Cost of 

Service Model (CoSM). Please note that 

certain ‘‘no fee’’ consular services are 

included in the Schedule of Fees so that 

members of the public will be aware of 

significant consular services provided 

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51248 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 

by the Department at no charge to the 

recipient of the service. 

What is the authority for this action? 

The Department of State derives the 

general authority to set fees based on the 

cost of the consular services it provides, 

and to charge those fees, from the 

general user charges statute, 31 U.S.C. 

9701. See, e.g., 31 U.S.C. 9701(b)(2)(A) 

(‘‘The head of each agency . . . may 

prescribe regulations establishing the 

charge for a service or thing of value 

provided by the agency . . . based on 

. . . the costs to the government.’’). As 

implemented through Executive Order 

10718 of June 27, 1957, 22 U.S.C. 4219 

further authorizes the Department to 

establish fees to be charged for official 

services provided by U.S. embassies and 

consulates. Other authorities allow the 

Department to charge fees for consular 

services, but not to determine the 

amount of such fees because the amount 

is statutorily determined. 

Several statutes address specific fees 

relating to nonimmigrant visas. For 

instance, 8 U.S.C. 1351 establishes 

reciprocity as the basic principle for 

setting the nonimmigrant visa issuance 

fee, meaning that the fee charged an 

applicant from a foreign country is 

based, insofar as practicable, on the 

amount of visa or other similar fees 

charged to U.S. nationals by that foreign 

country. In addition to the reciprocity 

issuance fee, Sec. 140(a) of Public Law 

103–236, 108 Stat. 382, as amended, 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 (note), 

establishes a cost-based application 

processing fee for nonimmigrant 

machine readable visas (MRVs) and 

border crossing cards (BCCs). See also 8 

U.S.C. 1713(b). Such fees remain 

available to the Department until 

expended. 8 U.S.C. 1351 (note) and 

1713(d). Furthermore, Sec. 501 of Public 

Law 110–293, Title V, 122 Stat. 2968, 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 (note), 

requires the Secretary of State to collect 

an additional $2 surcharge (the ‘‘HIV/

AIDS/TB/Malaria surcharge’’) on all 

MRVs and BCCs as part of the 

application processing fee; this 

surcharge must be deposited into the 

Treasury and goes to support programs 

to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and 

malaria. Section 2 of Public Law 113– 

42 imposes a temporary $1 surcharge on 

the fees for MRV and BCC application 

processing, to be deposited into the 

general fund of the Treasury. This 

provision will sunset two years after the 

first date on which the increased fee is 

collected and will not affect most MRV 

and BCC fees paid by applicants. 

Additionally, several statutes address 

fees for immigrant visa processing. For 

example, Sec. 636 of Public Law 104– 

208, div. C, Title VI, 110 Stat. 3009–703, 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1153 (note), 

authorizes the Secretary of State to 

collect and retain a ‘‘Diversity 

Immigrant Lottery Fee.’’ Under this fee 

authority, the Secretary of State may 

establish and retain a fee to recover the 

costs of ‘‘allocating visas’’ described in 

8 U.S.C. 1153, i.e., running the diversity 

visa lottery pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 

1154(a)(1)(I), and to recover the costs of 

‘‘processing applications’’ for diversity 

immigrant visas submitted by selectees 

of the lottery. Accordingly, the 

‘‘diversity visa lottery fee,’’ charged to 

those persons selected by the lottery 

who subsequently apply for a diversity 

immigrant visa, incorporates all the 

costs to the Department of administering 

the diversity visa lottery program and 

processing the resulting diversity 

immigrant visa applications. 

Another statute authorizes the 

Department to collect and retain a 

surcharge on immigrant visas to help 

pay for efforts to enhance border 

security. See 8 U.S.C. 1714. Although 

this immigrant visa surcharge was 

originally frozen statutorily at $45, 

subsequent legislation authorized the 

Department to amend this surcharge 

administratively, provided the resulting 

surcharge is ‘‘reasonably related to the 

costs of providing services in 

connection with the activity or item for 

which the surcharges are charged.’’ 

Public Law 109–472, Sec. 6, 120 Stat. 

3554, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1714 

(note). 

Certain people are exempted by law 

or regulation from paying specific fees 

or are expressly made subject to special 

fee charges by law. These are noted in 

the text below. They include, for 

instance, several exemptions from the 

nonimmigrant visa application 

processing fee for certain individuals 

who engage in charitable activities or 

who qualify for diplomatic visas. See 8 

U.S.C. 1351; 22 CFR 41.107(c). Certain 

Iraqi and Afghan nationals are similarly 

exempt from paying an immigrant visa 

application processing fee. See Public 

Law 110–181, div. A, Title XII, Sec. 

1244(d), 122 Stat. 3, reproduced at 8 

U.S.C. 1157 (note); Public Law 111–8, 

div. F, Title VI, Sec. 602(b)(4), 123 Stat. 

524, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1101 (note). 

Although the funds collected for 

many consular fees must be deposited 

into the general fund of the Treasury 

pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 3302(b), various 

statutes permit the Department to retain 

some or all of the fee revenue it collects. 

The Department retains the following 

relevant fees: (1) The MRV and BCC 

fees, see Public Law 103–236, Title I, 

Sec. 140(a)(2), 112 Stat. 2681–50, 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 (note) and 

8 U.S.C. 1713(d); (2) the immigrant visa 

and passport security surcharges, see 8 

U.S.C. 1714; (3) the diversity visa lottery 

fee, see Public Law 104–208, div. C, 

Title VI, Sec. 636, reproduced at 8 

U.S.C. 1153 (note); (4) the fee for an 

affidavit of support, see Public Law 

106–113, div. A, Title II, Sec. 232(a), 

113 Stat. 1501, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 

1183a (note); and (5) the fee to process 

requests from participants in the 

Department’s Exchange Visitor Program 

for a waiver of the two-year homeresidence requirement, see 22 U.S.C. 

1475e. The Department also has 

available one-third of the total annual 

revenue collected from fraud prevention 

and detection fees charged in relation to 

H- and L-category visas, See 8 U.S.C. 

1184(c)(12), 1356(v)(2)(A). 

The Department last changed 

nonimmigrant and immigrant visa fees 

in an interim final rule dated March 29, 

2012. See Department of State Schedule 

of Fees for Consular Services, 

Department of State and Overseas 

Embassies and Consulates, 22 CFR part 

22 (77 FR 18907). Those changes to the 

Schedule went into effect April 13, 

2012. The final rule regarding those fees 

was published on September 17, 2012 

(77 FR 57012). 

The Department last changed fees for 

passport and citizenship services and 

overseas citizens’ services in an interim 

final rule dated June 28, 2010. See 

Department of State Schedule of Fees 

for Consular Services, Department of 

State and Overseas Embassies and 

Consulates, 22 CFR Part 22 (75 FR 

36522). Those changes to the Schedule 

went into effect July 13, 2010. A final 

rule regarding those fees was published 

on February 2, 2012 (77 FR 5177). 

Some fees in the Schedule, including 

Items 20(a) and (b), 31(a) and (b) and 

35(c), are set by the Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS). These DHS 

fees were most recently updated by that 

agency on November 23, 2010, and are 

subject to change in the future. See 75 

FR 58962. The Department lists these 

DHS fees in the Department Schedule of 

Fees for cashiering purposes only. The 

Department has no authority to set DHS 

fees, which are listed at 8 CFR 

103.7(b)(1). 

Why is the Department adjusting 

certain nonimmigrant visa, immigrant 

visa, citizens services and 

administrative services fees at this 

time? 

Consistent with OMB Circular A–25 

guidelines, the Department recently 

completed a fee review using its 

activity-based Cost of Service Model. 

This review was conducted from April 

2012 through July 2013 and provides 

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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 51249 

1To request more information about the Cost of 

Service model, please send your request using one 

of the methods in the Address section above. 

the basis for updating the Schedule. The 

results of that review are outlined in 

this rule.1

Similar to the 2011 fee review, upon 

which the current Schedule is based, 

costs are generated by an activity-based 

cost model that takes into account all 

costs to the U.S. government. Unlike a 

typical accounting system, which 

accounts for only traditional generalledger-type costs such as salaries, 

supplies, travel and other business 

expenses, activity-based cost models 

measure the costs of activities, or 

processes, and then provide an 

additional view of costs by the products 

and services produced by an 

organization through the identification 

of the key cost drivers of the activities. 

Below is a description of Activity-Based 

Costing excerpted from the 

Supplemental Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking published on March 24, 

2010 (75 FR 14111). 

Activity-Based Costing Generally 

OMB Circular A–25 states that it is 

the objective of the United States 

Government to ‘‘(a) ensure that each 

service, sale, or use of Government 

goods or resources provided by an 

agency to specific recipients be selfsustaining; [and] (b) promote efficient 

allocation of the Nation’s resources by 

establishing charges for special benefits 

provided to the recipient that are at least 

as great as costs to the Government of 

providing the special benefits . . . .’’ 

OMB Circular A–25, 5(a)–(b); see also 31 

U.S.C. 9701(b)(2)(A) (agency ‘‘may 

prescribe regulations establishing the 

charge for a service or thing of value 

provided by the agency . . . based on 

. . . the costs to the Government . . . 

.’’). To set prices that are ‘‘selfsustaining,’’ the Department must 

determine the full cost of providing 

consular services. Following guidance 

provided in Statement 4 of OMB’s 

Statement of Federal Financial 

Accounting Standards (SFFAS), 

available at http://www.fasab.gov/

pdffiles/sffas-4.pdf, the Department 

chose to develop and use an activitybased costing (ABC) model to determine 

the full cost of the services listed in its 

Schedule of Fees, both those whose fee 

the Department proposes to change, as 

well as those whose fee will remain 

unchanged from prior years. The 

Department refers to the specific ABC 

model that underpins the proposed fees 

as the ‘‘Cost of Service Model’’ or 

‘‘CoSM.’’ 

The Government Accountability 

Office (GAO) defines activity-based 

costing as a ‘‘set of accounting methods 

used to identify and describe costs and 

required resources for activities within 

processes.’’ Because an organization can 

use the same staff and resources 

(computer equipment, production 

facilities, etc.) to produce multiple 

products or services, ABC models seek 

to precisely identify and assign costs to 

processes and activities and then to 

individual products and services 

through the identification of key cost 

drivers referred to as ‘‘resource drivers’’ 

and ‘‘activity drivers.’’ 

Example: Imagine a government agency 

that has a single facility it uses to prepare 

and issue a single product—a driver’s 

license. In this simple scenario, every cost 

associated with that facility (the salaries of 

employees, the electricity to power the 

computer terminals, the cost of a blank 

driver’s license, etc.) can be attributed 

directly to the cost of producing that single 

item. If that agency wants to ensure that it 

is charging a ‘‘self-sustaining’’ price for 

driver’s licenses, it only has to divide its total 

costs for a given time period by an estimate 

of the number of driver’s licenses to be 

produced during that same time period. 

However, if that agency issues 

multiple products (driver’s licenses, 

non-driver ID cards, etc.), has 

employees that work on other activities 

besides licenses (for example, accepting 

payment for traffic tickets), and operates 

out of multiple facilities it shares with 

other agencies, it becomes much more 

complex for the agency to determine 

exactly how much it costs to produce 

any single product. In those instances, 

the agency would need to know what 

percent of time its employees spend on 

each service and how much of its 

overhead (rent, utilities, facilities 

maintenance, etc.) can be allocated to 

the delivery of each service to determine 

the cost of producing each of its various 

products—the driver’s license, the nondriver ID card, etc. Using an ABC model 

would allow the agency to develop 

those costs. 

Components of Activity-Based Costing 

As noted in SFFAS Statement 4, 

‘‘activity-based costing has gained broad 

acceptance by manufacturing and 

service industries as an effective 

managerial tool’’ (SSFAS Statement 4, 

147). There are no ‘‘off-the-shelf’’ ABC 

models that allow the Department (or 

any other entity) to simply populate a 

few data points and generate an answer. 

ABC models require financial and 

accounting analysis and modeling skills 

combined with a detailed understanding 

of all the organization’s business 

processes, which, in an entity the size 

of the Department’s Bureau of Consular 

Affairs, are exceedingly complex. More 

specifically, ABC models require an 

organization to: 

• Identify all of the activities that are 

required to produce a particular product 

or service (‘‘activities’’); 

• Identify all of the resources 

allocated to the production of (costs) 

that product or service (‘‘resources’’); 

• Measure the quantity of resources 

consumed (‘‘resource driver’’); and 

• Measure the frequency and 

intensity of demand placed on activities 

to produce services (‘‘activity driver’’). 

For additional details on an activitybased cost model, see the Supplemental 

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

published on March 24, 2010 (75 FR 

14111). 

Although much of the modeling 

methodology has remained the same 

between fee reviews, the methodology 

for capturing Department historical 

support costs and projected costs has 

been updated to reflect the change in 

the Department’s workload. In order to 

accurately account for the costs 

associated with rapidly growing 

demand for nonimmigrant visas in 

locations such as China and Brazil, the 

current fee review also incorporates two 

years of projected costs in addition to 

two years of historical costs and one 

year of current costs. The new fees 

represent a weighted average of the 

annual costs by service for fiscal years 

2010–2014. Costs for individual fiscal 

years were weighted by the projected 

workload volume for that year. These 

weighted costs by fiscal year were then 

added together to generate a single cost 

per service upon which the fees are 

determined. 

The CoSM update included a new 

Overseas Time Survey, conducted in 

June 2012, which collected extensive 

data on both consular activities and the 

time spent by consular staff performing 

consular services at all overseas 

locations. Costs related to compensation 

for consular staff were then assigned to 

service categories based on the amount 

of time spent performing them. 

Therefore, the results of the Overseas 

Time Survey impacted costs for certain 

consular services identified below. 

Nonimmigrant Visa Application and 

Border Crossing Card Processing Fees 

The Department has determined, 

based on the CoSM, that the costs to the 

Department to accept, adjudicate, and 

issue each of the different MRV 

categories varies. The effort related to 

some categories such as petition-based 

MRVs is appreciably higher than the 

standard, non-petition-based MRV 

application. Each of those petitionmstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with RULES

51250 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 

based nonimmigrant visa categories 

requires a review of extensive 

documentation and a more in-depth 

applicant interview than other 

categories of MRVs. After thorough 

review through the CoSM, including 

updated consular processing time data 

from the Overseas Time Survey, the fee 

for processing E (treaty trader and treaty 

investor) visa applications will decrease 

from $270 to $205, and the fee for 

processing K (fiance ́ and certain spouses 

of U.S. citizens) visa applications will 

increase from $240 to $265. 

The Department rounded these fees to 

the nearest $5 for the ease of converting 

to foreign currencies, which are most 

often used to pay the fee. These fees also 

include the statutory $2 HIV/AIDS/TB/ 

Malaria surcharge and the $1 special 

immigrant program surcharge which 

must be attached to every MRV fee. 

Please note that in June 2013, the 

authority to charge the $1 surcharge 

mandated by section 239 of Public Law 

110–457, Title II, 122 Stat. 5044, 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 (note) 

lapsed, and the HIV/AIDS/TB/Malaria 

surcharge increased from $1 to $2 as 

mandated by Congress. See Public Law 

110–293, Title V, Sec. 501, 122 Stat. 

2968, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 

(note). Because those changes occurred 

simultaneously, nonimmigrant visa fees 

were not affected. 

Section 2 of Public Law 113–42, 127 

Stat. 552, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1351 

(note), imposes a temporary $1 

surcharge on the fees for MRV and BCC 

application processing, to be deposited 

into the general fund of the Treasury. 

This provision will sunset two years 

after the first date on which the 

increased fee is collected. The addition 

of the new $1 special immigrant 

program surcharge also does not affect 

most nonimmigrant visa fees. As the 

Department rounded these fees to the 

nearest $5 for the ease of converting 

foreign currencies, as noted above, the 

addition of this surcharge will not affect 

most MRV and BCC fees paid by 

applicants. The exception is the 

processing fee for BCC applications by 

minors under the age of 15, which is 

statutorily set at $13. The addition of 

the $1 special immigrant program 

surcharge to the $13 fee and $2 HIV/

AIDS/TB/Malaria surcharge will 

increase the total fee for this service 

from $15 to $16. 

Immigrant Visa Application Processing 

Fees 

In addition to the nonimmigrant visa 

application processing fee modifications 

referenced above, the Department is 

adjusting the four-tiered immigrant visa 

application processing fees based on the 

CoSM calculation for each discrete 

category of immigrant visa, as 

applications for certain categories cost 

more to process than others. 

Accordingly, the application processing 

fee for a Family-Based Visa (immediate 

relative and family preference, 

processed on the basis of an approved 

I–130, I–600 or I–800 petition) will 

increase from $230 to $325. The 

application processing fee for an 

Employment-Based Visa (processed on 

the basis of an approved I–140 alien 

worker or I–526 alien entrepreneur 

petition) will decrease from $405 to 

$345. Other Immigrant Visa applications 

(including for I–360 self-petitioners, 

special immigrant visa applicants and 

all others) will have an application 

processing fee of $205, down from $220. 

As noted above, certain qualifying Iraqi 

and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa 

applicants are statutorily exempt from 

paying any visa-related fees. Public Law 

110–181, div. A, Title XII, Sec. 1244(d), 

reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1157 (note); 

Public Law 111–8, div. F, Title VI, Sec. 

602(b)(4), reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1101 

(note). 

Immigrant Visa Security Surcharge 

The Department is increasing the 

Immigrant Visa Security Surcharge, 

which is applicable to all applicants 

except those persons who are statutorily 

exempted from paying fees, from $75 to 

$100. The Immigrant Visa Security 

Surcharge comprises those costs 

associated with the immigrant visa 

application processing fee that support 

enhanced border security. In this 

update, new data regarding time spent 

by consular officials related to enhanced 

border security in processing immigrant 

visa applications, derived from the 2012 

Overseas Time Survey, resulted in an 

increase to this cost. See 8 U.S.C. 1714 

and Public Law 109–472, Sec. 6, 120 

Stat. 3554, reproduced at 8 U.S.C. 1714 

(note). See also the Supplemental Notice 

of Proposed Rulemaking (75 FR 14111) 

for general details regarding the 

inclusion of Overseas Time Survey data 

into the Cost of Service Study. Please 

note that as of 2012, the Immigrant Visa 

Security Surcharge is embedded in the 

aforementioned immigrant visa 

application processing fee and is not 

charged as a standalone fee or set forth 

as a separate fee on the Schedule. 

Determining Returning Resident Status 

A permanent resident (called lawful 

permanent resident or LPR) or 

conditional resident (CR) who has 

remained outside the United States for 

one year, or beyond the validity period 

of a Re-entry Permit, requires a new 

immigrant visa to enter the United 

States and resume permanent residence. 

A provision exists under U.S. visa law 

for the issuance of a returning resident 

special immigrant visa to an LPR who 

remained outside the United States due 

to circumstances beyond his or her 

control. Processing those applications 

for determination of eligibility as a 

returning resident has become less 

costly due to continuing advances in 

automation, making it easier to verify 

previous U.S. immigration status. 

Accordingly, the Department will lower 

the fee from $275 to $180. 

Waiver of Two-Year Residency 

Requirement 

8 U.S.C. 1182, i.e., Educational Visitor 

Status; Foreign Residence Requirement; 

Waiver describes in detail certain 

categories of exchange visitors (J–1) that 

are subject to a two-year home-country 

physical presence requirement. This 

requires that the exchange visitor return 

to the country of his or her nationality 

or his or her last residence for at least 

two years following participation in 

particular exchange visitor programs 

before adjusting status in the United 

States or applying for certain visas to 

travel to the United States. This twoyear residency requirement may be 

waived in certain circumstances. The 

Department charges a fee for processing 

waiver applications. In accordance with 

the results of the CoSM, in which an 

updated analysis of time spent 

performing this activity indicated a 

reduced percentage of resources 

dedicated to this activity, the 

Department is decreasing the fee for 

processing an application for this 

waiver from $215 to $120. 

Affidavit of Support Review 

The Department charges the affidavit 

of support review fee for all affidavits of 

support reviewed at the National Visa 

Center in connection with an 

application for a family-based 

immigrant visa. The purpose of the 

review is to ensure that each affidavit is 

properly completed before the National 

Visa Center forwards it to a consular 

post for adjudication. The Department is 

increasing the fee from $88 to $120 to 

reflect the increase in the cost of 

providing this service, as determined by 

the CoSM, including updated analysis 

of time spent performing this activity. 

Documentation for Renunciation of 

Citizenship 

The CoSM demonstrated that 

documenting a U.S. citizen’s 

renunciation of citizenship is extremely 

costly, requiring American consular 

officers overseas to spend substantial 

amounts of time to accept, process, and 

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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 51251 

adjudicate cases. For example, consular 

officers must confirm that the potential 

renunciant fully understands the 

consequences of renunciation, including 

losing the right to reside in the United 

States without documentation as an 

alien. Other steps include verifying that 

the renunciant is a U.S. citizen, 

conducting a minimum of two intensive 

interviews with the potential 

renunciant, and reviewing at least three 

consular systems before administering 

the oath of renunciation. The final 

approval of the loss of nationality must 

be done by law within the Directorate of 

Overseas Citizens Services in 

Washington, DC, after which the case is 

returned to the consular officer overseas 

for final delivery of the Certificate of 

Loss of Nationality to the renunciant. 

These steps further add to the time and 

labor that must be involved in the 

process. Accordingly, the Department is 

increasing the fee for processing such 

requests from $450 to $2,350. As noted 

in the interim final rule dated June 28, 

2010 (77 FR 36522), the fee of $450 was 

set substantially below the cost to the 

U.S. government of providing this 

service (less than one quarter of the 

cost). Since that time, demand for the 

service has increased dramatically, 

consuming far more consular officer 

time and resources, as reflected in the 

2012 Overseas Time Survey and 

increased workload data. Because the 

Department believes there is no public 

benefit or other reason for setting this 

fee below cost, the Department is 

increasing this fee to reflect the full cost 

of providing the service. Therefore the 

increased fee reflects both the increased 

cost of the provision of service as well 

as the determination to now charge the 

full cost. 

Consular Time Charges 

The Department previously charged a 

consular time fee of $231 per hour, per 

employee. This fee is charged when 

indicated on the Schedule of Fees or 

when services are performed away from 

the office or outside regular business 

hours. The CoSM estimated that the 

hourly consular time charge is now 

lower. Accordingly, the Department is 

lowering this fee to $135 per hour. 

When will the Department of State 

implement this interim final rule? 

The Department intends to implement 

this interim final rule, and initiate 

collection of the fees set forth herein, 

effective 15 days after publication of 

this rule in the Federal Register. 

Regulatory Findings 

Administrative Procedure Act 

The Department is publishing this 

rule as an interim final rule, with a 60- 

day provision for post-promulgation 

comments and with an effective date 

less than 30 days from the date of 

publication, based on the ‘‘good cause’’ 

exceptions set forth at 5 U.S.C. 

553(b)(3)(B) and 553(d)(3). Delaying 

implementation of this rule would be 

contrary to the public interest because 

the fees in this rule fund consular 

services that are critical to national 

security, including screening visa 

applicants. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Department has reviewed this 

rule and, by approving it, certifies that 

it will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities as defined in 5 U.S.C. 601(6). 

This rule decreases the application 

processing fees for employer-sponsored 

petition-based immigrant visas. The 

issuance of these visas is contingent 

upon approval by DHS of a petition 

filed by a United States company with 

DHS, and these companies pay a 

petition fee to DHS to cover the 

processing of the petition. The visa itself 

is sought and paid for by an individual 

foreign national overseas who seeks to 

come to the United States. The amount 

of the petition fees that are paid by 

small entities to DHS is not, in any way, 

connected to or controlled by the 

amount of the visa fees paid by 

individuals to the Department of State. 

While small entities may cover or 

reimburse employees for application 

processing fees, the State Department is 

unaware of the number of such entities 

that do so as it, again, is not a process 

controlled by the State Department. The 

workload volume in this category 

accounts for only four percent of the 

total immigrant workload expected in 

FY 2014. The $60 decrease in the 

application processing fee for these 

immigrant visas will likely have a 

positive, albeit insignificant, economic 

impact on the small entities that choose 

to reimburse the applicant for the visa 

fee. Therefore the State Department 

certifies that this rule will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995 

This rule will not result in the 

expenditure by state, local, and tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100 million or more 

in any year, and it will not significantly 

or uniquely affect small governments. 

Therefore, no actions were deemed 

necessary under the provisions of the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995, 2 U.S.C. 1501–1504. 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 

This rule is not a major rule as 

defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

The Department has reviewed this 

rule to ensure its consistency with the 

regulatory philosophy and principles set 

forth in the Executive Orders. This rule 

has been submitted to OMB for review. 

This rule is necessary in light of the 

Department of State’s CoSM finding that 

the cost of processing various categories 

of nonimmigrant and immigrant visas 

and of providing certain overseas 

citizens services has changed since 

those fees were last amended in 2012 

and 2010, respectively. The Department 

is setting the new fees in accordance 

with 31 U.S.C. 9701 and other 

applicable legal authority, as described 

in detail above. See, e.g., 31 U.S.C. 

9701(b)(2)(A) (‘‘The head of each agency 

. . . may prescribe regulations 

establishing the charge for a service or 

thing of value provided by the agency 

. . . based on . . . the costs to the 

government.’’). This regulation sets the 

fees for consular services at the amount 

required to recover the costs associated 

with providing that service. 

Details of the fee changes are as 

follows: 

Item No. Proposed 

fee 

Unit 

cost 

Current 

fee 

Change 

in fee 

Percentage 

increase 

Estimated 

annual 

number of 

applications 1

Estimated 

change in 

annual 

fees 

collected 2

SCHEDULE OF FEES FOR CONSULAR SERVICES 

*******

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51252 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 

Item No. Proposed 

fee 

Unit 

cost 

Current 

fee 

Change 

in fee 

Percentage 

increase 

Estimated 

annual 

number of 

applications 1

Estimated 

change in 

annual 

fees 

collected 2

PASSPORT AND CITIZENSHIP SERVICES 

8. Administrative Processing of Formal Renunciation of U.S. 

Citizenship ................. $2,350 $2,349 $450 $1,900 422 2,378 $4,518,200 

NONIMMIGRANT VISA SERVICES 

21. Nonimmigrant Visa 

Application and Border Crossing Card 

Processing Fees (per 

person): 

(c) E category nonimmigrant visa .... $205 $205 $270 ($65) ¥24 46,901 ¥$3,048,565 

(d) K category nonimmigrant visa .... $265 $262 $240 $25 10 16,708 $417,700 

(f) Border crossing 

card—under age 

15; for Mexican 

citizens if parent 

or guardian has 

or is applying for 

a border crossing 

card (valid 10 

years or until the 

applicant reaches 

age 15; whichever is sooner) ... $16 (3) $15 $1 7 250,000 $250,000 

IMMIGRANT AND SPECIAL VISA SERVICES 

32. Immigrant Visa Application Processing 

Fee (per person) 

(a) Immediate relative and family 

preference applications ................ $325 $322 $230 $95 41 575,360 $54,659,200 

(b) Employmentbased applications .................... $345 $344 $405 ($60) ¥15 26,811 ¥$1,608,660 

(c) Other immigrant 

visa applications 

(including I–360 

self-petitioners 

and special immigrant visa applicants) .................. $205 $204 $220 ($15) ¥7 1,559 ¥$23,385 

34. Affidavit of Support 

Review ....................... $120 $116 $88 $32 36 317,898 $10,172,736 

35. Special Visa Services: 

(a) Determining Returning Resident 

Status ................. $180 $178 $275 ($95) ¥35 3,412 ¥$324,140 

(c) Waiver of TwoYear Residency 

Requirement ....... $120 $116 $215 ($95) ¥44 10,488 ¥$996,360 

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES 

75. Consular Time 

Charges ..................... $135 $134 $231 ($96) ¥42 134 ¥$12,864 

Total ....................... ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ $64,003,862 

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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 51253 

Item No. Proposed 

fee 

Unit 

cost 

Current 

fee 

Change 

in fee 

Percentage 

increase 

Estimated 

annual 

number of 

applications 1

Estimated 

change in 

annual 

fees 

collected 2

*******

1Based on projected FY 2014 workload. 

2 Using projected FY 2014 workload to generate projections. 

3The fee for Border Crossing Card applications by minors is statutorily set. 

Historically, nonimmigrant visa 

workload has increased year to year at 

approximately 11 percent. The 

Department anticipates that with the 

current state of the global economy, 

demand will be approximately 10.1 

million in Fiscal Year 2014. With regard 

to the economic impact as a whole, the 

more than 94 percent of nonimmigrant 

visa applications that are not petitionbased are sought by and paid for 

entirely by foreign national applicants. 

The revenue increases resulting from 

those fees should not be considered to 

have a direct cost impact on the 

domestic economy. 

With regard to immigrant visas, many 

categories are numerically capped by 

law; these caps limit workload and keep 

current demand fairly stable. In FY 

2013, the Department issued 9.1 percent 

of all available immigrant visas in 

Employment-Based categories (capped 

at 140,000 including adjustments of 

status processed domestically by DHS). 

In FY 2013, all immigrant visas 

available under the Diversity Visa 

program were issued (capped at 50,000 

including adjustments of status 

processed domestically by DHS). Also 

in FY 2013, the Department issued 84.9 

percent of the immigrant visas available 

for Family-Preference categories 

(capped at 226,000 including 

adjustments of status processed 

domestically by DHS). 

There are nearly 5.7 million 

applicants currently awaiting 

numerically-controlled visas, sufficient 

to fill more than 12 years’ workload at 

the current annual caps, and this does 

not take into account applicants who 

would be adjusting status in the United 

States. It is reasonable to expect that the 

immigrant visa workload for FY 2014 

and FY 2015 will remain about the same 

as FY 2013. However, please note that 

these estimates do not take into account 

variables that the Department cannot 

predict at this time, such as legislative 

changes contemplated by 

Comprehensive Immigration Reform. 

Executive Orders 12372 and 13132 

This regulation will not have 

substantial direct effects on the states, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the states, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. Therefore, in 

accordance with Sec. 6 of Executive 

Order 13132, it is determined that this 

rule does not have sufficient federalism 

implications to require consultations or 

warrant the preparation of a federalism 

summary impact statement. The 

regulations implementing Executive 

Order 12372 regarding 

intergovernmental consultation on 

federal programs and activities do not 

apply to this regulation. 

Executive Order 13175 

The Department has determined that 

this rulemaking will not have tribal 

implications, will not impose 

substantial direct compliance costs on 

Indian tribal governments, and will not 

preempt tribal law. Accordingly, the 

requirements of Executive Order 13175 

do not apply to this rulemaking. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This rule does not create or revise any 

reporting or record-keeping 

requirements. 

List of Subjects in 22 CFR Part 22 

Consular services, Fees, Passports and 

visas. 

Accordingly, for the reasons stated in 

the preamble, 22 CFR part 22 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 22—SCHEDULE OF FEES FOR 

CONSULAR SERVICES— 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND 

FOREIGN SERVICE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 22 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 8 U.S.C. 1101 note, 1153 note, 

1183a note, 1351, 1351 note, 1714, 1714 note; 

10 U.S.C. 2602(c); 11 U.S.C. 1157 note; 22 

U.S.C. 214, 214 note, 1475e, 2504(a), 4201, 

4206, 4215, 4219, 6551; 31 U.S.C. 9701; Exec. 

Order 10,718, 22 FR 4632 (1957); Exec. Order 

11,295, 31 FR 10603 (1966). 

■ 2. Section 22.1 is amended by revising 

the introductory text and items 8, 21, 

32, 34, 35, and 75 in the ‘‘Schedule of 

Fees for Consular Services’’ table and 

removing item 36 to read as follows: 

§ 22.1 Schedule of fees. 

The following table sets forth the new 

fees for the following categories listed 

on the U.S. Department of State’s 

Schedule of Fees for Consular Services: 

SCHEDULE OF FEES FOR CONSULAR SERVICES

Item No. Fee 

PASSPORT AND CITIZENSHIP SERVICES 

*******

8. Administrative Processing of Formal Renunciation of U.S. Citizenship ............................................................................. $2,350 

*******

NONIMMIGRANT VISA SERVICES 

*******

21. Nonimmigrant Visa Application and Border Crossing Card Processing Fees (per person): 

(a) Non-petition-based nonimmigrant visa (except E category) ....................................................................................... $160 

(b) H, L, O, P, Q and R category nonimmigrant visa ...................................................................................................... $190 

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51254 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 167 / Thursday, August 28, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 

SCHEDULE OF FEES FOR CONSULAR SERVICES—Continued 

Item No. Fee 

(c) E category nonimmigrant visa ..................................................................................................................................... $205 

(d) K category (fiance ́) nonimmigrant visa ....................................................................................................................... $265 

(e) Border crossing card—age 15 and over (10 year validity) ......................................................................................... $160 

(f) Border crossing card—under age 15; for Mexican citizens if parent or guardian has or is applying for a border 

crossing card (valid 10 years or until the applicant reaches age 15, whichever is sooner).

$16 

*******

IMMIGRANT AND SPECIAL VISA SERVICES 

*******

32. Immigrant Visa Application Processing Fee (per person) 

(a) Immediate relative and family preference applications .............................................................................................. $325 

(b) Employment-based applications ................................................................................................................................. $345 

(c) Other immigrant visa applications (including I–360 self-petitioners and special immigrant visa applicants) ............. $205

(d) Certain Iraqi and Afghan special immigrant visa applications .................................................................................... NO FEE. 

*******

34. Affidavit of Support Review (only when reviewed domestically) ....................................................................................... $120 

35. Special Visa Services: 

(a) Determining Returning Resident Status ..................................................................................................................... $180 

(b) Waiver of two year residency requirement ................................................................................................................. $120 

(c) Waiver of immigrant visa ineligibility (collected for USCIS and subject to change) ................................................... For fee amount, see 8 

CFR 103.7(b)(1). 

(d) Refugee or significant public benefit parole case processing .................................................................................... NO FEE. 

(Items 36 through 40 vacant.) 

*******

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES 

*******

75. Consular Time Charges: As required by this schedule and for fee services performed away from the office or during 

after-duty hours (per hour or part thereof/per consular officer).

$135 

* * * * * * * 

Dated: August 14, 2014. 

Patrick Kennedy, 

Under Secretary of State for Management, 

Department of State. 

[FR Doc. 2014–20516 Filed 8–27–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Parole Commission 

28 CFR Part 2 

[Docket No. USPC–2013–02] 

Paroling, Recommitting, and 

Supervising Federal Prisoners: 

Prisoners Serving Sentences Under 

the United States and District of 

Columbia Codes 

AGENCY: United States Parole 

Commission, Justice. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The United States Parole 

Commission is revising its rules 

describing the conditions of release set 

for persons on supervision and the 

procedures used to impose and modify 

the conditions. The revision is part of 

our ongoing effort to make our rules 

easier to understand for those persons 

affected by the rules and other 

interested persons and organizations. 

We are also adding new procedures for 

imposing special conditions for sex 

offenders, and filling a gap left by an 

earlier rule change in 2003 regarding the 

administrative appeals that may be filed 

by District of Columbia offenders on 

supervised release. 

DATES: Effective August 28, 2014 and is 

applicable beginning July 23, 2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Office of the General Counsel, U.S. 

Parole Commission, 90 K Street NE., 

Washington, DC 20530, telephone (202) 

346–7030. Questions about this 

publication are welcome, but inquiries 

concerning individual cases cannot be 

answered over the telephone. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

In the notice of proposed rulemaking 

published at 78 FR 11998–12002 (Feb. 

21, 2013), we discussed the Parole 

Commission’s authority to impose 

conditions of release, the purposes and 

types of release conditions and the 

procedures we use to impose the 

conditions. We refer you to the previous 

publication for a review of this 

background material. In the notice of 

proposed rulemaking we encouraged the 

public to comment on our proposed 

changes and we received a substantial 

number of written comments from 

interested persons and organizations. 

We discuss that public comment below. 

Public Comment From the District of 

Columbia Public Defender Service 

(PDS) 

PDS recommends that the 

Commission place restrictions on the 

current rule allowing a supervision 

officer to seize prohibited items in plain 

view when conducting a visit of the 

releasee’s residence or place of 

employment. This rule was first 

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