A user fee is a sum of money paid as a necessary condition to gain access to a particular service or facility. Examples of user fees could include highway tolls or parking garages.

People pay user fees for the use of many government-affiliated services and facilities as well. At the federal level, for example, there is a fee to go up to the top of the Statue of Liberty and to drive into the country’s many national parks. Also, certain services offered by the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. require the public to pay a fee.