How much citizenship costs and how to get a fee waiver or reduced fee

This page covers USCIS fees and fee waivers. It is general information, not legal or tax advice. For help finding local grants or free legal help, see Free or low cost immigration legal help in the Bay Area.

How much does it cost?

These are the fees on the USCIS Fee Schedule (updated October 16, 2026), checked October 21, 2026. Fees change. Check the USCIS Fee Schedule the day you file. If your fee is wrong, USCIS rejects the whole packet.

Do I qualify to pay less?

Count everyone in your household: you, your spouse if you live together, your unmarried children under 21 who live with you, certain older children who are full time students or have a disability, your parents who live with you, and anyone else on your tax return as a dependent. Add up their yearly income.

Then compare it to this table. USCIS has archived its own income chart, Form I-912P, which still shows 2024 numbers. We worked out this table from the 2026 HHS poverty guidelines (150% and 400% of each line, checked October 21, 2026). For the fee waiver, the USCIS Policy Manual says USCIS compares your income at the time you ask with 150 percent of the current poverty guidelines, which today are the 2026 numbers (checked October 21, 2026). If your income is close to a line, have a clinic check it before you file.

• At or below the first column: ask for a fee waiver. Do not ask for the reduced fee.
• Between the two columns: ask for the reduced fee.
• Above the second column: you pay the full fee, unless you face a money emergency (see below).

Do not ask for both a fee waiver and a reduced fee.

Who can get a fee waiver?

You can ask USCIS to waive the whole fee if you can prove one of these:

1. You get a means tested benefit right now. That means a benefit based on income, such as Medicaid (Medi-Cal), SNAP (CalFresh), SSI, TANF, WIC, LIHEAP, or Section 8 housing help. It also counts if your spouse, your child, or your parent (if you are under 21 or disabled) gets it.
2. Your household income is at or below 150% of the poverty guidelines when you file.
3. You are in extreme financial hardship right now, for example from sudden medical bills or an emergency, and cannot pay.

How to ask: fill out Form I-912 (or write a letter with the same information) and put it in the same envelope as your paper N-400. You cannot send it later. You cannot use it if you file online.

Proof for a benefit: a recent letter or notice from the agency that shows the person's name, the agency name, the type of benefit, and that the benefit is active now (for example, a renewal date or an end date).

USCIS approves a waiver only if you clearly show you cannot pay. If it says no, it may reject your N-400 too. Keep a copy of everything and refile with the fee or a better request.

Who can pay the reduced fee?

You can pay $380 instead of $760 if your household income is above the fee waiver line but at or below 400% of the poverty guidelines.

How to ask:

1. Use a paper Form N-400.
2. In Part 10, answer "Yes" to Item 1 and fill out the rest of Part 10.
3. Send $380 and proof of your household income.
4. Translate anything not in English, with a signed translator's note.

The most common reasons USCIS turns down a reduced fee: no proof that income is low enough, or proof in another language with no certified translation.

Who counts as income: a roommate who is not family does not count. But if someone who lives with you pays part of your rent or bills, add what they pay. If you are separated and your spouse lives elsewhere, leave out their income but include any support they send, and add a signed statement or papers that show you live apart.

How do I pay?

• Online: pay in your USCIS online account. This is $50 less than paper.
• By mail: pay with a credit, debit or prepaid card on Form G-1450, or from a U.S. bank account on Form G-1650. Write the exact amount. If you qualify for an exemption from paying electronically, you send a signed Form G-1651 (USCIS) with your payment. Ask a clinic before you use it.

Make sure the money is in the account. Sign every form. An unsigned N-400 is rejected.

Is the fee going up?

Maybe, but not yet. On June 23, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security published a proposed rule. It would:

• raise the N-400 fee to $1,330 on paper and $1,280 online
• end the fee waiver and the reduced fee for the N-400
• keep the $0 fee for military applicants

The comment period closed August 24, 2026. As of October 21, 2026, no final rule had been published, and the Fee Schedule still shows $760, $710 and $380. A proposed rule does not change what you pay today.

What this means for you: if you are eligible now and have no red flags, talk to a clinic about filing soon rather than waiting. If you have any red flag, do not rush. Get advice first. See Check these warning signs first. Either way, check the Fee Schedule the day you mail.

Can someone help me pay?

Some nonprofits help with government filing fees for people with low income, for example Coastside Hope in Half Moon Bay. Ask any group on Free or low cost immigration legal help in the Bay Area whether they know of fee help this year. Never give money to a notario or anyone who promises a faster or cheaper USCIS fee. Fees go only to USCIS. See Warning signs of an immigration scam.

Who can help?

These are free or low cost Bay Area offices and nonprofits. Outside the Bay Area, use the state's map of free immigration legal services. Contact them to confirm hours, languages and openings. Being listed here is not a referral or a promise of service.

• Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, for low income San Mateo and Santa Clara County residents: 650-326-6440. Walk in help Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1861 Bay Road.
• Immigration Institute of the Bay Area, Redwood City: free citizenship workshop on the second Tuesday of each month. Register at (650) 780-7530.
• Coastside Hope, Half Moon Bay: 650-726-9071, extension 229. Help with filing fees may be available if your income qualifies.

Next: Can I become a US citizen? Check these warning signs first and What documents you need.

Is there a checklist I can print?