If you are a K-pop fan living in the United States, your favorite performers may have a harder time reaching you now. On April 1, 2024, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that entertainment visa costs for international artists have increased by 250%. Unfortunately, this was not an April Fools joke. A visa application for an international artist wanting to perform in the United States went from $460 to $1,615. A very steep increase, especially for any artists or agencies on the fence about US shows.
Each member of a performing group has to apply for a visa separately, so for an act like BTS, which has seven members, those application fees are exponentially more expensive than they were a month ago. This may not be the end of the world for a famous band, but this process could have a disastrous impact on up-and-coming K-pop acts. What makes this worse is that it’s not just the performers that need visas either; this affects everyone working alongside the act. This has the potential to be a financial burden that few will be able to bear.
Gabriel Castro, an immigration attorney of BAL Sports and Entertainment Practice, said “Dua Lipa, the Rolling Stones, they're going to pay these fees. It's not even a rounding error. They could misplace $1,200 in their budgets and they wouldn’t even notice. It's the indie rock bands, niche acts, jazz musicians from Japan who will be affected." This statement can be applied to those smaller K-pop artists who may have to avoid coming to the United States entirely now because of these price increases. With K-pop popularity in the US already seeing some shake ups, this could have a major impact on the exposure these newer bands would receive.
It’s disappointing to hear there’s a possibility that the average fan won’t be able to see their new favorite band perform in the United States. While this may be true, it is still possible to support them by streaming music and buying merchandise. And by attending the shows that do happen in the United States, fans can help support those groups that do make it over.
