A new surcharge for non-U.S. citizens at 11 major national parks is causing long entrance lines, visitor turnarounds, and legal challenges, park employees say.
A new surcharge for non-U.S. citizens to enter some of the most popular national parks has clogged park entrances and driven visitors away, according to some park employees who spoke to the news outlet The Guardian.
The new surcharge for each visitor over 16 who is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident was introduced by the Department of the Interior on January 1. The surcharge applies to 11 of the most popular national parks, including Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion.
The Guardian notes that National Park Service (NPS) employees, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have reported delays on entering the parks because of the extra time required to assess the citizenship or residency status of each occupant of each vehicle. The employees also reported that would-be visitors, upon learning of the additional nonresident fee, have oftentimes instead turned around and chosen not to enter the parks at all.
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In a December 2025 statement, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) predicted such delays, voicing concerns that the Interior Department had rushed the rule into application just weeks after it was announced.
“At parks where entrance lines already stretch for miles, fee collectors will be required to verify each visitor’s residency, creating further delays and diminishing the experience for everyone, residents and non-residents alike. This could ruin someone’s trip of a lifetime,” said Emily Douce, deputy vice president for government affairs for NPCA, as part of that statement.
A group of five senators also raised similar concerns in December. In a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the senators wrote they were “concerned about the impact this plan would have on the already understaffed NPS workforce. The NPS permanent workforce has been reduced by 24% since January, with lost positions that would be important in helping implement these new fees, including fee collectors and IT specialists.
“Further, the additional requirements to check each visitors’ residency will very likely slow entry into the parks, particularly the highly visited parks identified to charge $100 per person in addition to regular entry fees.
“Finally, we are concerned about what these fees will mean for international visitation. According to the International Inbound Travel Association, overseas visitation is down more than 3%, and Canadian visitation is down 25%. International visitors spent $254 billion in the United States in 2024, and national parks are often part of their itinerary.”
The letter was signed by Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV).
Several countries, including South Africa, Ecuador, Tanzania, Egypt, Thailand, and Cambodia, charge higher fees for nonresidents to enter national parks and other major tourism attractions. It should be noted that each of those countries typically has a much higher disparity between local wages and those of visiting tourists.
Last month, the Center for Biological Diversity sued the Interior Department, saying that the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA) of 2004 explicitly prohibits the department from introducing any type of pass or fee not outlined in the act or in other laws passed by Congress. The government acted outside of its authority, says the suit, for creating “Resident” and “Non-Resident” categories for the passes and for one-time park admission fees.
The fee applies to one-time visits at the 11 affected parks, and will still apply on fee-free days, which the NPS says are intended only for U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Holders of an annual pass brought prior to January 1 won’t have to pay the additional non-resident fee for the duration of the pass.
And I agree with the one poster who said that the park service is operating in the 1950s!
FYI: Galapagos charges $170 more for non-residents. Kruger National Park charges 4.5X for tourists vs residents. Most Thailand attactions charge 4-6 times more, Shri Lanka often charges 10-30 times more.