Who Pays the I-140 Filing Fee: Employer or Employee?

DOL rules force employers to cover PERM costs, but the I-140 fee itself follows different, category-specific rules worth knowing before you offer to pay it yourself.

Your employer's attorney just mentioned the I-140 filing fee, and now you're wondering whether that cost is coming out of your paycheck. It's a fair question, and the short answer is that it depends on which green card category you're in — but for most employer-sponsored, PERM-based petitions, the sponsoring employer is expected to bear it, not you.

Here's the fee picture for 2026: Form I-140 has a base filing fee of $715, plus an Asylum Program Fee of $300 for self-petitioners or $600 for employer-sponsored petitions. Optional premium processing adds $2,965 as of March 1, 2026. Who actually writes the check for each of those depends on your green card category, and that's what this guide breaks down.

One thing worth clearing up before we go further, because it trips up a lot of readers on H-1B, this I-140 fee has nothing to do with the $100,000 H-1B supplemental fee some employers have discussed. That separate fee, when it applies, targets new H-1B petitions for workers being brought in from outside the US — and it is currently blocked, vacated by a federal court on 2026-06-08 with the First Circuit denying a stay on 2026-07-24. It is not part of the green card process at all.

I-140 fees at a glance

These are the current USCIS-set amounts. Fees change periodically, so treat this table as a 2026 snapshot and verify the live number on the USCIS fee schedule before you budget around it.

Why "employer or employee" isn't one rule

The confusion around this question comes from treating Form I-140 as a single, uniform filing. In practice, who files it — and therefore who is expected to fund it — changes based on the green card category:

• PERM-based EB-2 and EB-3. An employer sponsors you, completes labor certification (PERM) with the Department of Labor, and then files the I-140 on your behalf as the petitioner. This is the most common path for employer-sponsored green cards, and it's where the DOL's cost-shifting protections are strongest.
• EB-1A (extraordinary ability) and EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver). You file the petition yourself. There's no PERM step and no requirement that an employer sponsor you at all, so the fee-payment question doesn't really involve an employer in the first place.
• EB-1B (outstanding researcher/professor) and EB-1C (multinational manager). An employer is still the petitioner, but neither category requires PERM labor certification, so the specific DOL rule about labor-cert costs doesn't technically apply here — even though the employer is the one signing and filing.

That's the nuance the batch of "who pays" questions usually misses: the rule that's easy to state clearly (DOL requires employers to cover PERM costs) governs a narrower slice of the process than people assume, and I-140-specific fee-payment rules can differ by category and by the individual situation. If you're not sure which bucket you're in, our guide to confirming whether your company actually sponsors green cards is a good starting point before you have the fee conversation.

What DOL actually requires for PERM-based petitions

For the PERM-based path (the one most EB-2 and EB-3 candidates are on), Department of Labor regulations at 20 CFR 656.12 require the sponsoring employer, not the worker, to pay for the labor certification process. That includes attorney fees tied to preparing and filing the labor certification, required recruitment costs, and the PERM filing itself. The rule exists to prevent employers from treating a green card sponsorship as something the employee finances, which DOL and USCIS view as evidence the job offer or the underlying wage isn't genuinely being provided by the employer.

Where things get less crisp is the I-140 itself. The regulation speaks clearly to labor certification costs; it doesn't spell out, line by line, who must pay the $715 base fee or the $600 Asylum Program Fee on the I-140 that follows. In practice, most immigration attorneys advise employers to cover the I-140 too, for the same reason DOL cares about labor-cert costs, an employer-sponsored petition is supposed to look and function like an employer-driven process. But because the regulation itself is narrower than that practice, and because company policies vary, this is genuinely a "confirm with your employer's counsel" situation rather than a fixed rule you can rely on universally.

Self-petition categories: no employer, no question

If you're filing EB-1A or EB-2 NIW, this entire question resolves itself differently. You are the petitioner. There is no PERM step, and often no employer relationship driving the filing at all — some EB-1A and NIW petitioners aren't even working for a US employer yet. Because there's no sponsoring company standing behind the petition, the DOL cost-shifting logic that protects PERM-based workers simply doesn't come into play. You cover the $715 base fee, the $300 self-petition version of the Asylum Program Fee, and premium processing if you choose to add it.

Premium processing is its own conversation

Premium processing deserves separate treatment because it isn't a mandatory part of the petition the way the base fee and Asylum Program Fee are. It's an optional expedite service, currently $2,965 as of March 1, 2026, and the guarantee attached to it varies by category, as detailed in our breakdown of the 15-day versus 45-day premium processing timelines.

Because it's optional, employer practice on premium processing is far less consistent than on the base filing fee. Some employers include it automatically as part of a competitive sponsorship package. Others leave the choice, and the cost, to the employee if faster movement toward a green card matters more to the worker than to the company's timeline. A wrinkle worth knowing: the I-907 request for premium processing is filed by the petitioner of record, which on an employer-sponsored I-140 is your employer, not you. Even if you're the one who wants to pay for speed, the request itself typically has to go through your employer and their attorney rather than being something you file independently.

How to find out who pays at your company

Rather than guessing, work through this with your employer's immigration team directly:

1. Ask the attorney handling your case, not HR, which specific fees the company covers: base filing fee, Asylum Program Fee, and premium processing, itemized separately.
2. Get the answer in writing, ideally in your offer letter or a company immigration policy document, not a verbal assurance from a recruiter.
3. Ask specifically about premium processing, since it's the fee most likely to be treated differently from the base filing and Asylum Program Fee.
4. Ask what happens if you leave the company before or shortly after the I-140 is filed or approved, including whether any repayment clause applies to green card costs.
5. If you're PERM-based, confirm the labor certification stage followed the DOL cost rule, since that stage is where the clearest legal protection exists, before assuming the same protection automatically extends to every downstream fee.

If sponsorship hasn't been discussed yet and you're still negotiating an offer, it's worth raising green card support explicitly before you sign. Our guide on negotiating green card sponsorship into your offer walks through how to have that conversation without it feeling like an ultimatum.

Common mistakes

• Assuming DOL's PERM rule automatically covers the I-140 fee too. The regulation is explicit about labor certification costs; it doesn't clearly dictate every downstream USCIS fee, which is exactly why practice varies.
• Confusing the I-140 fee with the $100,000 H-1B fee. They're unrelated filings for unrelated purposes, and the H-1B fee is currently blocked by court order as of 2026-08-17 regardless.
• Not getting the fee arrangement in writing before the petition is filed. A verbal "we'll take care of it" from a recruiter isn't the same as a documented company policy your immigration attorney can point to later.
• Assuming premium processing is included by default. It's an add-on, and employer practice on covering it is inconsistent enough that you shouldn't assume either way without asking.
• Skipping the question for self-petition categories. If you're filing EB-1A or EB-2 NIW without an employer as petitioner, there's no DOL cost-shifting rule to lean on, and budgeting for the full fee yourself is the safer assumption from day one.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to file Form I-140 in 2026? The base filing fee is $715. Employer-sponsored petitions also carry a $600 Asylum Program Fee, while self-petitions carry a $300 version of that same fee, so most PERM-based filings run $1,315 total before any premium processing. Optional premium processing adds $2,965 as of March 1, 2026. These are USCIS figures set at the federal level, not fees any private service controls.

Can my employer require me to pay the I-140 filing fee? For PERM-based green card categories, Department of Labor rules require the sponsoring employer to cover the costs of the labor certification process, and many immigration attorneys extend that same practice to the I-140 itself to keep the sponsorship clearly employer-funded. But I-140-specific fee-payment rules can differ by category and by employer policy, so treat this as a question for your employer's immigration counsel, not a settled universal rule.

Who pays for I-140 premium processing? There is no single rule. Premium processing is an optional expedite service, not a mandatory part of the petition, so some employers absorb it as part of a competitive offer while others leave it to the employee to request and fund if faster processing matters to them. If you are considering paying for premium processing yourself on an employer-filed petition, ask your employer's attorney first, since the petitioner of record is legally your employer, not you.

Do I pay the I-140 fee myself if I am self-petitioning under EB-1A or EB-2 NIW? Yes. Extraordinary ability (EB-1A) and National Interest Waiver (EB-2 NIW) petitions are filed by the individual, not an employer, because neither category requires a job offer or a PERM labor certification. Since there is no sponsoring employer named as the petitioner, the DOL cost-shifting rule that protects PERM-based workers does not apply, and the filer covers the base fee, the $300 self-petition Asylum Program Fee, and any premium processing personally.

What happens if my employer asks me to reimburse the I-140 fee after I leave? This is a fact-specific situation that depends on your category, your employer's written policies, and applicable state law, so it is not something to resolve from general guidance. If the request touches costs tied to a PERM labor certification, remember that DOL rules generally prohibit shifting those specific costs to the worker. For anything involving the I-140 fee itself or a signed repayment agreement, talk to a licensed immigration attorney before agreeing to anything or assuming you are obligated to pay.

This is general information, not legal advice. Fee amounts and who's expected to pay them can vary by category, employer policy, and circumstance, so confirm your specific situation with your employer's immigration attorney before you rely on any of it.

Want help figuring out what a sponsorship offer actually includes before you sign? F1Jobs can walk through the details with you.