A study by the American Immigration Council shows that the USCIS backlog has more than tripled over the last decade. From 3.5 million cases in the first quarter of FY2016 (October–December 2015), the backlog has crossed 11.6 million in the fourth quarter of FY2025 (July–September 2025).
USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow on X shared his views on the backlog, ” When I became USCIS Director, I inherited a staggering backlog of asylum cases: 1.5 million—up from 400k in 2021. That was the result of 4 years of unchecked crossings at the border because the previous president didn’t care who they let into our homeland.”
American Immigration Council’s study of the data was based on its new interactive dashboard, which is a compilation of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) data to date, with at least 20,000 data points for more than 190 immigration application and petition types between fiscal year (FY) 2016 through FY 2025.
The dashboard also shows that completions began to lag new filings in 2020 and 2021, when the COVID-19 pandemic slowed processing, and policy changes implemented during the first Trump administration severely limited the agency’s capacity and efficiency, leaving it unprepared to deal with a surge in new filings in 2021.
According to the AIC, in just 15 months, between June 2020 and September 2021, the backlog grew by 2.3 million cases. Between April and June 2021, the efficiency ratio, which measures completed cases relative to new filings in a given quarter, fell to a record low of 0.66. During that quarter, USCIS received 2.6 million applications and petitions but processed just 1.7 million, adding 866,910 forms to the backlog in just three months.
By the end of the Biden administration, it would have taken 9.4 months to clear the backlog at the processing capacity between October and December 2024.
In 2025, the backlog surged by an additional 2 million cases, following a rise in new applications and petitions at the beginning of the new year and a decline in completions in the first three quarters of the second Trump administration. At the processing capacity between July and September 2025, it would have taken 13.8 months to clear the backlog.
Applications for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) experienced the largest increase in pending cases between October and December 2024 and between July and September 2025, the most recent period for which data are available. During this time, the number of pending TPS applications rose by roughly 150%, from 465,118 to nearly 1.2 million applications.
Pending requests for employment authorization (EAD) for individuals with green card applications more than doubled over the same time period, increasing from 154,469 to 373,007. Notably, pending petitions for both non-immigrant and immigrant workers also increased substantially, by 67.9% and 35.7%, respectively.
Denial Rates
Most major form types experienced rising denial rates between Q1 FY2025 and Q4 FY2025. Among high-volume forms, the denial rate for TPS applications soared from 2.9% to 12.8%. Meanwhile, the denial rate for EAD applications filed by people with pending green card applications more than doubled, from 5.1% to 13.6%. Denial rates for waiver applications also rose sharply, from roughly one in five applications to one in three.
USCIS Backlogs
The numbers show that the USCIS has failed to keep up with the increasing volume of applications and petitions it receives. Backlogs are historically high, forcing USCIS officials to spend more time maintaining cases than resolving them. Longer processing times cause additional burden for applicants, petitioners, and beneficiaries. They also encourage repeat filings and make results less predictable.
Disclaimer: This article is based on data published by the American Immigration Council at the time of writing. Figures and statistics may be updated as new data becomes available. This article does not constitute legal advice. For immigration guidance specific to your situation, please consult a qualified immigration attorney.