Protecting Asylum Integrity Act

Rick Scott

Republican · FL · Senator

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

• Ted Budd (R-NC)· 2026-06-15

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

2026-06-11

Source: Congress.gov

The federal government would charge people a fee when they request a credible fear interview, which is a process where asylum seekers demonstrate they face danger if returned to their home country. This would affect immigrants and asylum applicants who are trying to establish that they qualify for protection in the United States. The Department of Homeland Security would collect these fees to help cover the costs of conducting these interviews.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 4771 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4771 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to collect a fee for credible fear interviews, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 11, 2026 Mr. Scott of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to collect a fee for credible fear interviews, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Asylum Integrity Act''. SEC. 2. CREDIBLE FEAR PROCESSING FEE. (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings: (1) The Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) expressly authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to prescribe and collect fees for the processing of immigration applications, benefits, and claims, including through the Immigration Examinations Fee Account established under section 286(m) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(m)). (2) The credible fear interview required under section 235(b)(1) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)) is a statutorily mandated component of the expedited removal process and serves as the threshold step for individuals seeking to pursue asylum or other protection claims. (3) Credible fear screenings impose substantial administrative, personnel, and operational costs on U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of Homeland Security, including costs relating to officer time, interpreter services, detention support, and downstream processing of positive determinations. (4) A reasonable user fee for credible fear processing-- (A) is consistent with longstanding congressional policy of recovering costs associated with immigration claims processing; (B) promotes fiscal responsibility; (C) deters the filing of frivolous or meritless claims; and (D) generates revenue that can be used to support border security and immigration enforcement activities. (5) The imposition of such a fee is a budgetary measure that will increase Federal revenues. (b) Credible Fear Processing Fee.--Section 235(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(H) Fee for credible fear processing.-- ``(i) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall assess and collect a fee of not less than $100 for each credible fear interview conducted under this paragraph. Such fee shall be collected before such interview is conducted. ``(ii) Adjustment for inflation.--The amount of the fee under clause (i) shall be adjusted annually, beginning in fiscal year 2027, for inflation using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in the same manner as civil monetary penalties are adjusted under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-410; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note). ``(iii) Deposit of fees.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 50 percent of the fees collected under this subparagraph shall be deposited into the Immigration Examinations Fee Account established under section 286(m) and shall be available to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, without further appropriation, for processing and operations. The remaining 50 percent of such fees collected shall be deposited into the general fund of the Treasury.''. <all>

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