D. Advance Payment

An agency may require advance fee payment if you have “previously failed to pay fees in a timely fashion, or the agency has determined that the fee will exceed $250.”¹¹³ You should consult the agency’s regulations for how you may remedy a failure to previously “pay fees in a timely fashion,” as an agency can refuse to process a new request until it receives such payment. For example, Department of Defense regulations state that if you have previously failed to pay fees within 30 days of the billing date, it may require you to pay the amount owed plus any interest, or demonstrate payment of the fee, and require advance payment of estimated fees before processing “a new or pending request.”¹¹⁴

If the agency seeks advance payment on the grounds that the fees will be greater than $250, and you do not wish to pay an advance fee, you should first review the agency’s regulations to determine if you may avoid this requirement. For example, Department of Defense regulations state that where costs will exceed $250, you may avoid making an advance payment if you have “a history of prompt payments” and provide the agency “satisfactory assurance of full payment.”¹¹⁵ In contrast, the agency may require advance payment of costs up to the entire estimated amount if you have no payment history.¹¹⁶

Additionally, you should ask for an itemization of the fees in order to find bases upon which you can negotiate with the agency to reduce the costs and/or the scope of the request.