The United States Department of State has reduced the fee required for Americans to officially give up their United States citizenship by about 80%, lowering it from $2,350 to $450.

After several years of legal disputes with advocacy groups representing Americans seeking to renounce their nationality, the department issued a final rule on Friday in the Federal Register confirming the change. The new fee took effect the same day.

Although the reduction had been announced in 2023, it had not previously been implemented. The updated charge returns to the same amount that the State Department originally set when it began requiring a payment for citizenship renunciation in 2010.

Giving up U.S. citizenship is a detailed and time-consuming process. Applicants must repeatedly confirm, both in writing and verbally, to a State Department consular officer that they understand the consequences before taking the formal oath of renunciation. Afterward, the request must still be reviewed by the department.

In 2015, the government increased the fee from $450 to $2,350 to offset administrative costs as more Americans began seeking to renounce their citizenship. The rise was partly driven by stricter U.S. tax-reporting rules affecting Americans living abroad.

The sharp increase faced criticism from organizations such as the Association of Accidental Americans, a France-based group representing people who mainly live outside the United States but hold U.S. citizenship simply because they were born there.

The organization launched several legal challenges arguing the fee was unconstitutional, including one ongoing case claiming there should be no charge at all to give up citizenship.

The group’s president, Fabien Lehagre, welcomed the decision, stating that it helps ensure the right to renounce citizenship is accessible to everyone. He said the outcome followed six years of persistent legal efforts and advocacy.

According to court filings by the association, at least 8,755 Americans paid the full $2,350 fee to renounce their citizenship after the 2023 announcement that the price would be lowered. The State Department has not released the overall number of Americans who have given up their citizenship.