N-400 Fee: Current Cost, Reduced Fee and Fee Waiver

The N-400 filing fee is $710 if you file online and $760 if you file on paper, according to the USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055, edition 10/07/26) as checked on October 13, 2026. Applicants whose documented household income is not more than 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines can pay a reduced fee of $380 on a paper application. Those who qualify for a fee waiver pay nothing, and there is no fee for people applying on the basis of military service. The fee covers biometrics. There is no separate fingerprint charge.

One thing to watch: on June 23, 2026 the Department of Homeland Security proposed raising the fee to $1,280 online and $1,330 on paper and ending both the reduced fee and fee waivers. That proposal is not in effect. As of October 14, 2026, no final rule had been published. This guide covers today's fees, who qualifies for a discount, how to pay, and what the proposal would change. It is general information, not legal or financial advice. The official form and instructions are at uscis.gov/n-400.

N-400 fee in 2026: the current amounts

Source: USCIS Form G-1055, Fee Schedule, edition dated 10/07/26, page last updated October 7, 2026.

The $50 difference between paper and online is a standing discount USCIS gives for online filing. If you pay the full fee and are comfortable with a computer, there is no reason to pay the paper price.

What the fee does and does not cover

The filing fee pays for processing the application, the biometrics appointment, the interview, both attempts at the English and civics tests, the oath ceremony and your first Certificate of Naturalization. USCIS does not refund it if the application is denied or withdrawn.

It does not cover the costs that come before and after:

Passport fees are from the State Department's fee page, last updated March 19, 2026. For a straightforward case filed online, the government costs from application to passport in hand come to $875: $710 for the N-400 and $165 for the passport book.

Who qualifies for the $380 reduced fee

The reduced fee is half the paper fee. You qualify if you file a paper N-400 and document that your annual household income is not more than 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines when you file. The income limits USCIS is using took effect January 13, 2026.

Source: USCIS Poverty Guidelines page, figures for the 48 contiguous states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, effective January 13, 2026. Alaska and Hawaii have higher limits: for a household of four, $165,000 in Alaska and $151,800 in Hawaii at the 400% level.

Those limits are higher than many people expect. A family of four earning $95,000 is well under the $132,000 ceiling and can pay $380 instead of $760.

Who counts in your household

USCIS counts you, your spouse if you live together, the head of your household if that is someone else, your unmarried children under 21 who live with you, unmarried children under 24 who are full-time students and live with you when not at school, children of any age who cannot care for themselves because of a disability and for whom you are legal guardian, your parents if they live with you, and anyone else claimed as a dependent on the relevant tax returns. A roommate or relative who lives with you but is not in one of those groups is not counted, and only money that person actually contributes to your household is added to your income.

How to request it

1. File on paper. The reduced fee cannot be requested online.
2. In Part 10 of the N-400, answer "Yes" to Item Number 1 and complete the rest of the part with your household size and income.
3. Attach proof of income. The proposed rule describes the current requirement as a copy of each household member's most recent federal tax return or equivalent documents, and USCIS's reduced fee page lists the evidence it accepts.
4. Include payment of exactly $380.
5. Add certified English translations of any foreign-language documents.

Do not file a reduced fee request and a fee waiver request together. USCIS says to pick one. If your income is at or below 150% of the guidelines, the agency tells you to request the full waiver instead.

Who qualifies for a full fee waiver

A fee waiver brings the cost to zero. You request it with Form I-912, or a written request containing the same information, sent with a paper N-400. USCIS approves a waiver only if you clearly show you cannot pay, on one of three grounds:

• A means-tested benefit. You, your spouse, your child, or your parent (if you are under 21 or disabled) currently receive a public benefit that is awarded based on income. USCIS lists Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, SSI, CHIP, Section 8 housing assistance, WIC and LIHEAP among the examples.
• Low income. Your household income is at or below 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines at the time you file, the middle column in the table above.
• Financial hardship. You are facing extreme hardship, such as unexpected medical bills or an emergency, that keeps you from paying.

Some benefits do not count as means-tested for this purpose: Medicare, unemployment benefits, Social Security retirement and disability insurance, and student financial aid.

Fee waivers are common. USCIS reports that 14.3% of people who naturalized in fiscal year 2024 had an approved fee waiver, and applicants 65 and older used them more than any other age group. The risk is on the paperwork side: if USCIS finds you are not eligible, it may reject both the waiver request and the application, and you have to start again.

USCIS states that receiving public benefits does not negatively affect its review of the fee waiver request. If past use of benefits worries you for another reason, raise it with an attorney or accredited representative before filing.

Military applicants pay nothing

The fee is $0, online or on paper, for applicants who meet the requirements of section 328 or 329 of the Immigration and Nationality Act: in broad terms, those with at least one year of honorable service in peacetime, or service during a designated period of hostilities. No waiver request is needed. The proposed fee rule would keep this exemption. USCIS runs a Military Help Line at 877-247-4645 for service members and their families.

How to pay the N-400 fee

Online filers

You pay at the end of the online form through Pay.gov, with a credit card, debit card or a withdrawal from a U.S. bank account. The application is not submitted until the payment goes through.

Paper filers

USCIS now requires electronic payment for mailed applications as well. The fee schedule gives two options:

• Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, to pay by credit, debit or prepaid card.
• Form G-1650, Authorization for ACH Transactions, to pay directly from a U.S. bank account.

An applicant who qualifies for an exemption from electronic payment has to include Form G-1651, Exemption for Paper Fee Payment, with the package. Cash is never accepted.

Check three things before sealing the envelope: the amount is exact, the card has enough available credit and will not expire soon, and the authorization form is signed. The N-400 instructions say USCIS will reject an application with an incorrect payment method or one that pays more than required, not only one that pays too little. A declined card means a rejected package, and the application has to be mailed again.

The proposed N-400 fee increase

The proposal appears in the Federal Register at 91 FR 37500 under the title "Naturalization Application Fee Adjustments." A correction was published July 8, 2026. It would make three changes.

DHS says the purpose is to recover the full cost of adjudicating the forms. In the proposal it states that the current $760 fee was set below the cost the agency calculated in 2024, which it put at $1,135 for paper filings. The $50 online discount would stay.

Where the proposal stands

• Published as a notice of proposed rulemaking: June 23, 2026
• Public comment period closed: August 24, 2026
• Final rule: none published as of October 14, 2026, based on our check of the Federal Register under the rule's identifier, RIN 1615-AD08

A proposed rule changes nothing by itself. The agency has to review the comments and publish a final rule, and the final rule will state the date the new fees begin. There is no announced date, and the final amounts can differ from the proposal. When USCIS last changed its fees, on April 1, 2024, the new amounts applied to applications postmarked on or after the effective date.

Should you file before the fee goes up?

If you are already eligible and your case is clean, filing now means paying today's fee, and for anyone who qualifies for the reduced fee or a waiver the difference would be large: $380 or $0 today against a proposed $1,330 on paper. That is a reasonable factor in your timing.

It is not a reason to file before you are eligible or before your documents are in order. An application filed more than 90 days early, or one that is denied over a residence gap or an undisclosed arrest, costs the full fee and leaves a denial on your record. Check your eligibility first in how to become a U.S. citizen.

How the N-400 fee has changed

Source: the history section of the June 23, 2026 proposed rule. The same document notes that after the 2024 change, reduced fee filings rose from 0.3% to 3.2% of all N-400 receipts.

How much does it cost to become a U.S. citizen, start to finish?

For a permanent resident who already has a green card, the required government cost is the N-400 fee alone. Three realistic totals, using October 2026 fees:

• Full fee, online, with a passport book: $710 + $165 = $875
• Full fee, paper, with a passport book: $760 + $165 = $925
• Reduced fee, with a passport book: $380 + $165 = $545

A married couple filing together pays two fees, since each adult files a separate N-400. Children under 18 who are permanent residents and live in the United States in the custody of a parent who naturalizes generally become citizens automatically and do not file an N-400.

Legal help is the largest optional cost. Private attorney fees vary by city and by how complicated the case is, so ask for a written flat fee before hiring anyone. Nonprofit organizations recognized by the Department of Justice often charge much less, and many hold free citizenship workshops where volunteers help complete the form.

Where to go next

The form itself, part by part, is explained in the N-400 form guide. Current waits for every field office are in N-400 processing time. To prepare for the appointment, see the citizenship interview and the U.S. citizenship test, and for the final step, the oath ceremony.