Cummings Foundation Gift Covers New Immigration Fees

The Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts (CLCM) is grateful to announce an additional $25,000 contribution from the Cummings Foundation to help cover newly imposed and sharply increased immigration fees faced by our clients. 

This generous support comes at a critical time. Recent federal changes have introduced significant new costs—such as a first-ever $100 annual fee to apply for asylum, $250 to seek protection from parental abuse or neglect as a Special Immigrant Juvenile, and over $500 to apply for permission to work while awaiting a decision from immigration officials. In many cases, fee waivers are no longer available, even for unaccompanied children. For children without a parent or legal guardian, these expenses threaten to put justice out of reach. The National Immigrant Justice Center has a helpful explainer about the fees here. 

Claire Valentin, CLCM Managing Director of Innovation and Advocacy, reflected:

For a child who has experienced harm from a parent, $250 can feel impossible to raise. Thanks to the generosity of the Cummings Foundation, we can ensure access to vital legal protection.

The Cummings Foundation’s gift will allow CLCM to: 

• Fund newly required immigration filing fees for clients who cannot afford them 

• Protect children and youth from being pushed into exploitative or dangerous labor  

• Ensure unaccompanied children continue to have meaningful access to legal protections

We extend our sincere thanks to the Cummings Foundation for standing with CLCM’s clients at this pivotal moment.