Nearly 1 million new U.S. citizens in the past year: NPR
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About 967,400 adult immigrants took the Pledge of Allegiance and became US citizens this fiscal year. new report Released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service.
The all-time high comes as the federal government works to reduce the backlog of claims exacerbated by the pandemic.
Only two other times in U.S. history have the number of naturalized adults surpassed fiscal year 2022. Department of Homeland Security.
The Fiscal Year 2022 Pledge of Allegiance tally includes data from October 2021 through September 2022. However, children who were able to acquire citizenship through their parents are not included. In total, 1,023,200 adults and children will become U.S. citizens in his 2022.
most people subject Becoming a U.S. citizen after living in the U.S. for at least five years as a legal permanent resident. A spouse of a U.S. citizen can obtain citizenship after three years.There is also a path to citizenship for those who have served in army.
Some visas issued by USCIS in 2022 are up from previous years
Each year, the United States grants green cards to hundreds of thousands of foreign workers and their families. In 2022, USCIS issued a total of 275,000 employment-based visas. This is almost double the number of employment-based visas issued in 2019.
For many years, highly skilled workers china and india A good portion of these visas. Recently, however, the number of visas issued to Indians has surpassed the number of visas issued to Chinese workers. Between 2019 and 2022, the number of visas given to Indians has increased fivefold. This year they accounted for a third of all employment-based visas.
In 2022, USCIS has also expanded its availability. H-2B visaThis allows American businesses to hire temporary foreign workers for non-agricultural jobs. Many businesses, from vacation resorts to seafood processors, use the program to staff seasonal jobs.
Demand for temporary workers only increased during the pandemic. USCIS typically issues 66,000 H-2B visas for her each year. In 2022, the federal agency added: 65,000 More visa slots to accommodate the labor market.
Due to COVID and the hiring freeze, the total USCIS backlog has doubled by the end of 2021.
In 2022, the USCIS said the backlog of applications had decreased by 62% due to a surge in hiring. The federal agency said its goal is to permanently eliminate the backlog.
https://www.npr.org/2022/12/10/1141994507/citizenship-rate-us-record-high Nearly 1 million new U.S. citizens in the past year: NPR