How many visa applications for permanent immigration (green cards) are backlogged?
Two types of backlogs impact issuance of green cards. The first is due to visa availability. For example, the government caps employment-based permanent visas for foreign workers and their families at 140,000 per year. Also, no country can receive more than 7 percent of the total number of annual worldwide visas (approximately 25,600 visas). The second type of backlog is due to processing delays of applicants’ documents. This is related to the government’s lack of financial and human resources as well as increased scrutiny. Once the State Department grants a visa to an immigrant, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conduct background checks. As of October 9, 2009, USCIS was processing some family-related visas applications filed as far back as January 1987, and it was still processing some employment-related visa applications from June 2001. A US citizen wishing to sponsor an unmarried adult child from Mexico has to wait more than 18
