The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) monthly report shows a significant drop in the total number of immigration forms received in August compared to July 2025. In July, USCIS received 657,722 new applications across the tracked forms, while August saw a decrease to 469,373—a reduction of approximately 28.6%.
This decline was most pronounced for the I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization), which dropped from 374,325 applications in July to 222,122 in August, a decrease of 40.7%. Other forms, such as the I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative), also saw a notable reduction, from 81,780 to 71,930 applications (a 12.0% decrease).
Total approvals slightly decreased from 538,487 in July to 520,686 in August, despite the lower volume of new applications. Conversely, denials dropped more significantly, from 59,830 in July to 50,842 in August, a 15.0% reduction.
I-765 (Employment Authorization) approvals decreased, with 279,876 in August compared to 294,232 in July. Denials also decreased from 30,710 to 24,111. I-485 (Adjustment of Status, Family-Based) approvals dipped slightly from 52,181 to 48,366, while denials remained relatively stable (6,556 to 6,446).
N-400 (Naturalization) approvals and denials decreased: approvals were slightly down from 72,334 to 71,866, and denials dropped from 7,743 to 7,057. The steady processing time for the N-400 was 6.4 months for both months.
The pending caseload remains a significant concern, with 6,460,168 applications awaiting decisions in August 2025, down slightly from 6,558,392 in July. Of these, 4,071,682 (63%) in August were pending for over six months, a marginal improvement from the 3,882,858 pending over six months in July.
The I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative) continues to have the largest backlog, with 2,389,683 pending cases in August, of which 1,952,870 (81.7%) have been pending for over six months. The I-765 also has a substantial backlog, with 1,775,993 pending cases, though its average processing time of 3.6 months in August is shorter (up from 2.5 months in July).
Average processing times showed mixed changes. I-130 processing time increased from 14.3 months in July to 14.8 months in August, while I-485 (Other) processing time decreased from 22.2 months to 19.8 months. I-485 (Cuban) saw a marginal increase from 11.6 to 11.7 months (+0.1 months), indicating stable but slow processing with a significant pending caseload (312,913 in August). I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) processing time rose from 19.2 to 20.4 months (+1.2 months), one of the largest increases. I-765 (Employment Authorization) processing time increased from 2.5 to 3.6 months (+1.1 months).
The I-485 (Refugee) category saw the largest improvement, dropping from 12.7 to 8.5 months (−4.2 months). I-485 (Asylum) improved from 16.3 to 14.9 months. I-360 (Special Immigrant) decreased from 10.0 to 9.3 months. I-485 (Employment) had a slight improvement from 9.6 to 9.5 months (−0.1 months), suggesting stable processing for employment-based adjustments. I-485 (Family) remained steady at 8.8 months. N-400 (Naturalization) remained stable at 6.4 months, the second-fastest processing time.
Kishor Panthi
View More PostsKishor Panthi is the founder and editor-in-chief of Khasokhas and NepYork. He is the author of three books, “Kampan,” "UNTRANSLATABLE" and “Zero Mile.” He writes about social issues, immigration, and politics.
