Fees and Costs
Articles across the publication that deal with fees and costs.
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Immigration Law
Paying and Recovering an Immigration Bond: Obligors, Forms, and Refunds
The person who posts an immigration bond becomes an obligor with continuing duties, and is the only person the money can ever be refunded to. The receipt matters as much as the payment.
7 min readGuide -
Immigration Law
Visa Reciprocity Schedules: Validity, Entries, and Issuance Fees by Country
Two people with the same visa class can receive very different visas. The reciprocity schedule explains why, and it is published country by country by the State Department.
7 min readExplainer -
Immigration Law
Which Immigration Fees an Employer Must Pay and Which It May Not Shift
Sponsorship costs are allocated program by program, not by one universal rule. Getting the wrong program's rule can turn a routine payroll deduction into a wage violation.
7 min readExplainer -
Immigration Law
Cross-Chargeability: Using a Spouse or Parent's Country of Birth in the Queue
Immigrant visa queues are counted by country of birth, not citizenship. A narrow statutory rule lets some families borrow a relative's birthplace and cut the wait.
6 min readExplainer -
Courts & Civil Litigation
Court Costs, Filing Fees, and Fee Waivers for Low-Income Litigants
Filing fees are not the only cost of a lawsuit, and they are not always payable up front. Here is how waivers work in federal and state courts, and what they do not cover.
7 min readGuide -
Employment Law
Tip Pooling, Service Charges, and the Rules That Govern Them
A mandatory service charge is not a tip, and the difference changes who may keep the money, how overtime is calculated, and what has to be disclosed.
8 min readExplainer -
Family Law
College Expenses and Support for Adult Children: When Courts Order It
Child support usually ends at adulthood, but not always. A handful of states can order college contributions, several extend support for a disabled adult child, and agreements fill the gap elsewhere.
7 min readExplainer -
Consumer & Personal Finance
Subscription Traps and Negative-Option Billing: Cancelling Recurring Charges
Silence is not consent to a monthly charge. Federal law and a patchwork of state automatic-renewal statutes govern how recurring billing must be disclosed and canceled.
7 min readGuide -
Consumer & Personal Finance
Bank Account Freezes and Garnishment: Exempt Funds and How to Claim Them
Some money in a frozen account is protected without you doing anything. Most of it is only protected if you file the right claim before a short state deadline runs out.
7 min readGuide -
Consumer & Personal Finance
Payday and High-Cost Installment Loans: Terms, Rollovers, and State Limits
Whether a payday loan is legal, and on what terms, depends on the state. Federal law adds disclosure duties and a separate rate limit for military borrowers.
7 min readAnalysis -
Estate Planning & Elder Law
Pet Trusts: Funding and Enforcing Care for Animals After an Owner Dies
Leaving money to an animal does not work, because an animal cannot own property. A pet trust is the structure that turns a wish about care into something a court will enforce.
6 min readExplainer -
Criminal Law & Civil Rights
Police Property Seizures: Getting Personal Property and Vehicles Returned
The first question is not how to get property back but why it is being held. Evidence, forfeiture and impound each run on different rules, deadlines and paperwork.
7 min readGuide
