Filing an Appeal or Motion - Pay Fees

Last updated: November 14, 2023

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Overview
Process

If the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) finds that your school does not meet regulatory standards, they may deny and/or withdraw your certification. You will receive a:

Notice of Denial
Automatic Withdrawal
Withdrawal on Notice

These notices will tell you why your school was denied and/or withdrawn. They also tell you if you have the right to file:

An Appeal and/or
A Motion to Reopen or to Reconsider

Petitioners will be notified when receiving a decision from the Administrative Appeals Team (AAT) of their right to file a Motion to Reopen and/or Reconsider an unfavorable decision. The guidance that follows is applicable as well to those seeking to take such action.

Details on filing an Appeal or Motion can be found:

ICE.gov: How to File an Appeal or Motion page (Overview of the Appeal and Motion Processes)
ICE.gov: FAQs: SEVP Appeals and Motions page
SEVP Study in the States: An Overview of the Appeal and Motion Processes page
SEVP Study in the States: General Appeals Process Information PDF

If you choose to file an appeal and/or motion, you must complete the Form I-290B. A separate Form I-290B is required for each appeal/motion submitted, i.e., a school must file a Form I-290B when choosing to file an appeal and must also file a separate Form I-290B when filing a motion. Each Form I-290B now requires a $675 filing fee.

The fee must be paid through the federal government’s secured Pay.gov website. You may use a bank account (ACH -- Automated Clearing House), debit card, or credit card to submit an electronic payment using Pay.gov. A school will be issued a confirmation of payment from the website once payment is complete.

The Form I-290B, proof of payment, and any supporting evidence and/or brief must be submitted to AAT via email at appeals.adminteam@ice.dhs.gov before the deadline for timely filing expires.

AAT may reject the appeal or motion as improperly filed if proof of payment is not included with the submission of the Form I-290B.

To pay a fee:

Go to Pay.gov or click the link in the SEVIS Certification: Certification Petition Successfully Submitted email. The Pay.gov home page opens.

2. Enter Form I-290B in the search field of the Menu bar.

3. Click Search. The Search Results for “Form I-290B” page opens with Form I-290B Notice of Appeal or Motion in the search results.

4. Click Continue to begin the five-step payment process. The Form I-290B Notice of Appeal or Motion – Before You Begin page opens.

5. Click either:

Preview Form: Opens a non-editable preview of the first page of the DHS ICE Appeal/Motion Payment form.
Cancel: Cancels the payment process and returns the user to the Welcome to Pay.com page.
Continue to the Form: Opens the Complete Agency Form: DHS ICE Appeal/Motion Payment page.

Complete Agency Form: DHS SEVIS School Certification Payment page

6. Complete the fields:

Field	Description/Explanation
*School Name (Required)**	Enter the name of the school or school system. This is the same information entered in Field 1.2 on the first page of the electronic certification application (Form I-17), and not the name of the main campus.
*School Code (Required)**	Enter the school code of the school as listed in SEVIS.
*School Address (Required)**	Enter the street address of the school.
*School City (Required)**	Enter the city in which the school is located.
*School State (Required)**	Click the drop-down arrow and select the state in which the school is located.
*School Zip/Postal Code (Required)**	Enter a valid five-digit zip code for the city in which the school is located. The four-digit zip code extension is optional.
*School Contact First Name (Required)**	Enter the first name of the person making payment, or the name in which the debit or credit card was assigned. If the named assigned is for an institution, enter NFN in this field.
*School Contact Last Name (Required)**	Enter the last name of the SEVIS POC at the school. Note: This field may contain the name of the person making payment, or the name in which the debit or credit card was issued. If the bank account from which the payment is being drawn is in the name of an institution, enter the name of the institution in this field.
*School Contact Phone Number (Required)**	Enter the telephone number for the SEVIS POC at the school.
Amount * (Required)	This field is prepopulated and cannot be edited.
*  [Checkbox] (Required)	Click the checkbox to indicate that you understand the filing fee requirements.

7. Click either:

PDF Preview: Generates this page in Portable Document File (PDF) format.
Continue: Continues processing your payment. The Enter Payment Info: Payment Information page opens.

8. Under I want to pay with my: heading, select the radio button for your payment type.

Bank Account (ACH): Includes personal and business bank accounts.
Amazon Account
PayPal Account
Debit or Credit Card: Acceptable debit or credit cards include:
- MasterCard
- VISA
- Discover and Discover-branded cards, such as JCP and Union Pay
- Debit cards with a MasterCard or VISA logo

Additional payment and processing information is available on the Pay.gov FAQ page. Customer Service contact information is available on the Pay.gov Contact Us page.

9. Click either:

Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
Cancel: Cancels the payment process without making the required payment. This returns the user to the Pay.gov home page.
Next: Opens the Enter Payment Info: Please provide the payment information below page for either paying with a bank account (ACH), Digital Wallets (Amazon and PayPal) or paying with a debit or credit card.

Paying with a Bank Account (ACH)

To pay the fees with a bank account, from the Enter Payment Info: Please provide the payment information below page:

1. Complete the required fields:

Field	Description/Explanation
Payment Amount	This field is prepopulated and cannot be altered.
Payment Date	This field is prepopulated with the next available payment date and cannot be altered.
*Account Holder Names (Required)	This field is prepopulated. If the name of the account holder is not correct, make the necessary changes.
*Select Account Type (Required)	Click the drop-down arrow and select the type of bank account from which the funds will be drawn: Personal Checking Personal Savings Business Checking Business Savings
*Routing Number (Required)	Enter the routing number for your bank. Note: The routing number is the first set of numbers imprinted on the bottom, left corner of your check.
*Account Number (Required)	Enter the number for the account from which the payment will be made. Note: The account number is the second set of numbers imprinted on the bottom of your check.
*Confirm Account Number (Required)	Reenter your account number.
School Name	These fields are prepopulated and cannot be edited.

2. Click either:

Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
Cancel: Stops the payment process and return to the Pay.gov home page.
Review and Submit Payment: Advances to the Review and Submit page.

3. Enter:

Email Address (Required)
Confirm Email Address (Required)
Additional Email Address(es)

4. Confirm entries prior to proceeding. If corrections are necessary, click Return to Form to make the changes.

5. Read the statement under Authorization and Disclosure Statement, and then click the checkbox for I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement.

The I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement checkbox is required to submit your payment.

6. Click either:

Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
Cancel: Stops the payment process and return to the Pay.gov home page.
Submit Payment: Payment is submitted. You will be brought to the Confirmation page. If you selected the checkbox for confirmation email, you will receive a confirmation email from Pay.gov.

Paying with a Digital Wallet (Amazon and PayPal Accounts)

To pay the fees with a digital wallet:

Select Amazon account or PayPal account on the Enter Payment Info page.

Follow the instructions to pay the transaction from the selected digital wallet. You should be redirected back to the Review & Submit page.

Enter:
- Email Address (Required)
- Confirm Email Address (Required)
- Additional Email Address(es)
Confirm entries prior to proceeding. If corrections are necessary, click Return to Form to make the changes.
Read the statement under Authorization and Disclosure Statement, and then click the checkbox for I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement.

The I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement checkbox is required to submit your payment.

Click either:
- Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
- Cancel: Stops the payment process and return to the Pay.gov home page.
- Submit Payment: Payment is submitted. You will be brought to the Confirmation page. If you selected the checkbox for confirmation email, you will receive a confirmation email from Pay.gov.

Paying with a Debit or Credit Card

To pay the fees with a debit or credit card, from the Enter Payment Info: Please provide the payment information below page:

1. Complete the fields:

Field	Description/Explanation
*Payment Amount	This field is prepopulated and cannot be altered.
*Cardholder Name (Required)	This field is prepopulated. If the name of the cardholder is not correct, make the necessary changes.
*Cardholder Billing Address (Required)	This field is prepopulated. If the billing address is not correct, make the necessary changes.
Billing Address 2	Enter additional billing address information, if needed.
City	This field is prepopulated. If the information is not correct, make the necessary changes.
Country	Click the drop-down arrow and select the country to which the account holder’s bills are sent.
State/Province	This field is prepopulated. If the information is not correct, make the necessary changes.
Zip/Postal Code	This field is prepopulated. If the information is not correct, make the necessary changes.
*Card Number (Required)	Enter the debit or credit card number. Do not include hyphens or spaces.
*Expiration Date (Required)	Click the drop-down arrows and select the month and year in which the card expires.
*Security Cose (Required)	Enter the security verification number displayed on the card: On VISA, MasterCard, and Discover cards, the security code is a 3-digit number printed on the back of the card. On the American Express card, the security code is a 4-digit number printed on the front of the card. On-screen help is available for this field through the What’s this? link.
School Name	These fields are prepopulated and cannot be edited.

2. Click either:

Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
Cancel: Stops the payment process and returns to the Pay.gov home page.
Review and Submit Payment: Advances to the Review and Submit page.

3. Enter:

Email Address (Required)
Confirm Email Address (Required)
Additional Email Address(es)

4. Confirm entries prior to proceeding. If corrections are necessary, click Return to Form to make the changes.

5. Read the statement under Authorization and Disclosure Statement, and then click the checkbox for I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement.

The I agree to the Pay.gov authorization and disclosure statement checkbox is required to submit your payment.

6. Click either:

Previous or Return to Form: Returns to the previous page.
Cancel: Stops the payment process and return to the Pay.gov home page.
Submit Payment: Payment is submitted. You will be brought to the Confirmation page. If you selected the checkbox for confirmation email, you will receive a confirmation email from Pay.gov.

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