May 1, 2026

Backlogs and Processing Times Surge

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published its data for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025 (January–March), providing a detailed look at the impact of early policy changes under the Trump administration on U.S. immigration trends.

The report highlights a multifaceted landscape marked by increased demand, expanding backlogs, extended processing times, and evolving approval rates across both employment– and family-based immigration categories.

Here’s a clearer, more readable version of your update on processing time increases:

Form I-90 (Green Card Replacement)

• Processing time jumped 938% from Q1 to Q2 — rising from about 0.8 months to over 8 months.
• This is well above the typical 3–4 month average, and one of the highest levels in recent years.
• It indicates that delays are still worsening, not improving.

Form I-765 (Work Authorization)

• Pending initial applications rose by 87% compared to Q1.
• Total pending cases (including renewals and replacements) increased 79%, reaching over 2 million.
• The backlog of delayed cases grew nearly 181% in just one quarter — a sign of serious delays in work permit processing.

Form I-129 (Nonimmigrant Worker)

• Processing time increased 25% since Q1 and is up over 80% compared to last year.
• This happened despite a 75% drop in backlogs, suggesting that USCIS may have:
  • Reassigned resources away from I-129 cases, or
  • Introduced new review steps that are slowing things down.

Form I-129F (K-1 Fiancé Visa)

• Applications increased 5.7% from the previous quarter and are up 12% compared to a year ago.
• Approval rates improved to 67.9%, bouncing back after a recent dip, though they remain inconsistent over time.

Form I-751 (Removal of Conditions)

• Filings jumped 51.8% quarter-over-quarter and 49% year-over-year.
• This spike reflects both:
  • Progress in clearing older backlogs, and
  • A surge in new applications from recent marriage-based green card holders now eligible to remove conditions.

Form I-485 (Family-Based Adjustment of Status)

• Filings rose 2% since Q1 and are up 12% YoY.
• Approval rates dipped slightly to 84.4%, though they remain relatively strong.

Form N-400 (Naturalization)

• Applications increased 10.1% from last quarter but are down 6.2% compared to last year.
• Approval rates stayed steady at 91.1%, showing continued strength in naturalization approvals.

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