On March 14, USCIS released an Inspector General’s report on Green Card Processing Times.   The report found that green card processing times exceeded the existing 120-day goal by taking an average of 282 days to complete. The report identified processing times are greatly affected by interviews and vetting occurring at USCIS.

The report made two specific recommendations which USCIS concurred:

Recommendation 1: Implement plans to present information on the USCIS website that more accurately reflects the length of the adjudication process for green card applications, so the website information is clear and helpful to stakeholders.

Recommendation 2: Reassess the current green card application processing time goal of 120 days to determine whether it is reasonable and realistic and increase the timeframe if necessary.

OIG Analysis: We consider USCIS’ planned actions responsive to the recommendation, which is resolved and open. We will close this recommendation upon receiving USCIS’ decision regarding any changes to the goal for processing green card applications and the rationale behind the decision, including analysis of the newly calculated processing times.