特朗普政府因其实施新移民申请费的计划，被指控试图将针对寻求庇护者和试图在美国建立生活的移民的政府费用“武器化”。
在周五发布的新闻稿中，美国公民及移民服务局(USCIS)指出，收取并存入移民考试费账户的费用占该局预算的近96%。
“与大多数政府机构不同，南加州大学学费资助，”新闻稿称，并宣布其建议调整南加州大学IEFA学费计划，加权平均增加21%，以“确保全部成本回收。”
“目前的费用将使该机构每年缺少大约13亿美元的资金，”移民局说。
拟议中的增加将使公民费激增60%以上，从725美元增至1170美元，根据纽约时报。
与此同时，寻求庇护者在美国寻求庇护的申请将被收取50美元，此外，获得工作许可还需要490美元。
在与共享的声明中新闻周刊，无限移民公司的联合创始人称特朗普政府的提议为移民和寻求庇护者设置新的障碍是“短视的决定”。无限移民是一家寻求帮助人们在美国移民系统中导航的公司
无限移民联合创始人道格·兰德(Doug Rand)表示:“本届政府再次试图利用一切手段限制合法移民，甚至美国公民身份。”。"这是政府收费前所未有的武器化."
“设置入籍障碍对整个国家来说是一个经济上短视的决定，这一点得到了两党历届政府的认可，”联合创始人小王补充道。
王说:“所有的研究都指向归化导致移民进一步融入美国社会，获得更高的收入，缴纳更多的税款。”。"这些人已经等了几年甚至几十年才成为美国公民。"
然而，移民局代理局长肯·库奇内利在该局发表的声明中为这一决定辩护。他说，“USCIS需要检查收入和支出，就像一个企业一样，并根据这一分析进行调整。”
他说:「这项调整收费的建议，将确保更多申请人能负担其申请的真正成本，并尽量减少已经过度扩展的制度所带来的补贴。」。
“此外，移民申请和请愿书的裁决需要深入筛选，产生的费用必须由该机构承担，这一提案考虑到了我们的业务需求，并使我们的收费计划与处理每项申请的费用更好地保持一致，”库契内利说。
拟议的规则预计将有一个月的评论期。
如果它得以实施，美国将成为世界上少数几个收取寻求庇护者申请费的国家之一。
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACCUSED OF WEAPONIZING GOVERNMENT FEES WITH NEW ASYLUM SEEKER CHARGE
The Trump administration has been accused of seeking to "weaponize" government fees against asylum seekers and immigrants trying to build a life in the U.S. over its plan to implement new immigration application fees.
In a press release published Friday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency noted that fees collected and deposited into its Immigration Examinations Fee Account fund nearly 96 percent of the agency's budget.
"Unlike most government agencies, USCIS is fee-funded," the press release said, announcing its proposal to adjust USCIS IEFA fee schedules by a weighted average increase of 21 percent "to ensure full cost recovery."
"Current fees would leave the agency underfunded by approximately $1.3 billion per year," USCIS said.
The proposed increases would see citizenship fees surge more than 60 percent, rising from $725 to $1,170, according to The New York Times.
Meanwhile, asylum seekers would be charged $50 for applications to seek refuge in the U.S., in addition to $490 fees in order to obtain work permits.
In a statement shared with Newsweek, the co-founders of Boundless Immigration, a firm seeking to help people navigate the U.S.'s immigration system, calling the Trump administration's bid asserting that raising fresh barriers for immigrants and asylum seekers a "short-sighted decision."
"Once again, this administration is attempting to use every tool at its disposal to restrict legal immigration and even U.S. citizenship," said Boundless Immigration co-founder Doug Rand. "It's an unprecedented weaponization of government fees."
"Putting up barriers to naturalization is an economically short-sighted decision for the whole nation, as recognized by past administrations of both parties," fellow co-founder Xiao Wang added.
"All research points to naturalization leading immigrants to further integrate into American society, earn higher incomes, and pay more in taxes," Wang said. "These are people who have waited years or sometimes decades to become U.S. citizens."
However, USCIS Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli defended the decision in a statement published by the agency. He said that "USCIS is required to examine incoming and outgoing expenditures, just like a business, and make adjustments based on that analysis."
"This proposed adjustment in fees would ensure more applicants cover the true cost of their applications and minimizes subsidies from an already over-extended system," he said.
"Furthermore, the adjudication of immigration applications and petitions requires in-depth screening, incurring costs that must be covered by the agency, and this proposal accounts for our operational needs and better aligns our fee schedule with the costs of processing each request," Cuccinelli said.
The proposed rule will be expected to have a month-long comment period.
If it is implemented, it would make the U.S. one of the few countries in the world that charges asylum seekers application fees.
