FDA Sets 2026 User Fee Rates for Generic and Animal Drug Programs with Inflation Adjustments

The FDA has announced user fee rates for fiscal year 2026 under both the Generic Drug User Fee Act (GDUFA III (search)Search term) and Animal Drug User Fee Act (ADUFA V (search)Search term), implementing substantial increases driven primarily by inflation adjustments and operational requirements.

Generic Drug User Fee Rates Show Significant Increases

Under GDUFA III (search)Search term, the FDA will collect $670.9 million in total fee revenue for FY 2026, representing a 4.9983 percent inflation adjustment from the base revenue amount of $638.96 million. The ANDA (search)Search drug filing fee will increase to $358,247, while Drug Master File (DMFView drug details) fees will reach $102,584.

Facility fees vary significantly based on location and type. Domestic finished dosage form (FDF (search)Search drug) facilities will pay $238,943, while foreign FDF facilities face a $253,943 fee due to the $15,000 foreign facility differential. Contract manufacturing organization (CMO (search)Search company) facilities will pay $57,346 for domestic operations and $72,346 for foreign facilities.

Active pharmaceutical ingredient (APIView drug details) facility fees are set at $43,549 for domestic facilities and $58,549 for foreign facilities. The program fees for generic drug applicants are tiered based on the number of approved ANDAs: small business applicants (1-5 ANDAs) will pay $191,838, medium-size operations (6-19 ANDAs) will pay $767,351, and large operations (20+ ANDAs) will pay $1,918,377.

Animal Drug Fees Reach Record Levels

The ADUFA V (search)Search term program will generate $36.2 million in total revenue for FY 2026, with animal drug application fees reaching $708,863. Supplemental animal drug applications requiring safety or effectiveness data will cost $354,431, representing 50 percent of the full application fee.

Annual fees include $13,463 for animal drug products, $200,000 for establishments, and $165,441 for sponsors. The FDA estimates receiving 10.20 fee-paying animal drug applications in FY 2026, based on the five-year average from FY 2020 to FY 2024.

Inflation Drives Fee Increases Across Both Programs

Both programs implemented dual inflation adjustments for personnel compensation and benefits (PC&B) and non-PC&B costs. For generic drugs, the PC&B component contributed 3.2725 percent to the total 4.9983 percent inflation adjustment, while non-PC&B costs added 1.7258 percent.

The animal drug program applied a 4.8384 percent inflation adjustment for FY 2026, compounded with the previous year's adjustment to reach a total multiplier of 1.0896. This resulted in an inflation-adjusted revenue amount of $36.5 million before other adjustments.

Capacity Planning and Operating Reserve Adjustments

The generic drug program conducted a capacity planning adjustment (CPA) analysis but determined no additional funding was needed beyond expected collections. The FDA forecasts 618 new original ANDAs for FY 2026, consistent with recent submission trends.

For operating reserves, the generic drug program maintained 9.80 weeks of carryover user fees at the end of FY 2025, just below the 10-week discretionary increase threshold, resulting in no operating reserve adjustment.

The animal drug program applied a $350,639 operating reserve adjustment to decrease fees, as the estimated FY 2025 end-of-year operating reserve of $14.39 million exceeded the 20-week maximum threshold of $14.04 million.

Fee Waivers and Payment Procedures

Both programs maintain various fee waiver and reduction provisions. The animal drug program offers barrier to innovation waivers for applicants with financial resources below $24.38 million (inflation-adjusted for FY 2026). Generic drug waivers are available under specific circumstances outlined in the respective statutes.

Payment procedures require U.S. currency through electronic check, credit card, or wire transfer. The FDA's preferred method is online payment through Pay.gov, with credit card payments limited to balances under $25,000.

Implementation Timeline

The new fee rates become effective October 1, 2025, and remain in effect through September 30, 2026. Application fees apply to submissions received on or after the effective date, while annual fees for products, establishments, and sponsors will be invoiced by December 31, 2025, with payment due by January 31, 2026.

The FDA will continue its iterative improvement approach for the generic drug capacity planning methodology, refining data and estimates for core review activities to improve accuracy over time. Both programs represent critical funding mechanisms for maintaining FDA's drug review capacity and meeting statutory performance goals.