Citizenship Approvals Fall 76% at USCIS Field Offices; San Jose Down 96%

USCIS field offices approved 57,697 naturalization applications between April and June 2026, down 76% from 241,326 in the same three months of 2025. The agency’s own office-by-office N-400 data shows the slowdown hit every region, but not evenly: San Jose decided 408 cases, down from 9,281, while Des Moines decided slightly more than a year earlier.

The backlog grew as decisions shrank. Pending Form N-400 cases at field offices reached 742,138 on June 30, 2026, up 40% from 529,018 a year earlier. Field offices received 145,872 new applications in the quarter, roughly two for every case they closed.

VisaVerge compiled every office’s numbers from the USCIS quarterly N-400 performance files for fiscal year 2026, third quarter (April 1 to June 30, 2026), and compared them with the same quarter of FY2025. You can look up any office, its pending caseload and its approval rate on our USCIS field office data pages.

The figures line up with what the administration has said publicly. On October 2, the Department of Homeland Security listed “naturalizations down 75%” among its results, as we reported in our coverage of that DHS statement. The field office files show where that drop happened.

Naturalization decisions fell for two straight quarters

Through the end of FY2025, field offices decided between 222,000 and 265,000 N-400 cases a quarter, approving about 91% of them. In January to March 2026, decisions fell to 98,462. In April to June they fell again, to about 70,500.

Denials fell too, but far less than approvals. Field offices denied about 12,800 applications in the April to June quarter, compared with 23,269 a year earlier. As a result, the share of decisions that ended in approval dropped from 91.2% to 81.8%.

USCIS has not published the field office file for October to December 2025, the first quarter of FY2026. The gap is the agency’s, not ours, and it means the exact quarter in which decisions began to fall cannot be pinned down from this data.

San Jose, Baltimore and San Francisco saw the steepest drops

Among the 76 offices that decided at least 500 citizenship cases in April to June 2025, 31 cut their decisions by three quarters or more a year later. Three cut them by more than 90%.

The San Jose field office had been one of the busiest in the country. It decided 9,281 N-400 cases and approved 9,041 of them in the spring of 2025. A year later it decided 408 and approved 317. Its pending caseload more than doubled, from 9,580 to 20,899.

California took the largest hit of any state. Its field offices together decided 7,515 N-400 cases in April to June 2026, against 45,528 a year earlier, an 83% drop. California’s pending caseload rose from 88,968 to 141,579. The California field office page breaks that down by office.

A few offices kept deciding cases

The slowdown was not uniform, which suggests local staffing and caseload mix mattered alongside national policy. The Des Moines office decided 681 cases, up from 623, and approved 93% of them. Lawrence, Massachusetts fell only 15%, and Pittsburgh 37%.

In raw volume, Texas offices did most of the work. The Houston field office decided 4,878 cases, more than any other office in the country, and approved 91% of them. Even so, Houston’s output was half its 2025 level, and its pending caseload grew from 20,390 to 31,057, the largest of any office. Dallas came second in decisions (3,358) and in pending cases (28,662).

Approval rates fell hardest in New Orleans and Queens

The national approval rate fell about nine points, but some offices fell much further. Among offices with at least 150 decisions in the quarter:

• New Orleans approved 45% of its decisions, down from 83%.
• Queens approved 54%, down from 89%, while still deciding 1,533 cases.
• Baltimore, Newark and Oakland Park, Florida each approved 65%, down from 93%, 86% and 84%.
• Miami approved 68%, down from 87%.

A lower approval rate does not mean those offices denied more people. In Queens, denials slipped from 837 to 706 while approvals collapsed from 6,985 to 827. That pattern fits a process where officers can still deny cases but must wait on extra checks before they approve one.

Why field offices stopped approving cases

USCIS has not published an explanation tied to these figures. Spokesman Zach Kahler has said the agency is conducting “more rigorous reviews.” Several policies that took effect over the past year line up with the timing of the drop:

• August 2025: a policy memo told officers to weigh an applicant’s positive contributions when judging good moral character, and a second memo revived neighborhood investigations of applicants.
• October 20, 2025: the 2025 civics test took effect for applications filed on or after that date: 20 questions, with 12 correct answers needed to pass.
• January 1, 2026: USCIS put holds on pending benefit applications, including naturalization, from nationals of the 39 countries under the expanded travel ban, and began re-reviewing approvals granted since January 20, 2021.
• April 27, 2026: USCIS began resubmitting fingerprints for most pending cases through an expanded FBI criminal-history check. Law firms reported that final approvals were largely paused until those checks cleared, while officers were told the resubmission was not needed for cases they intended to deny.

The fingerprint re-vetting began four weeks into the April to June quarter, which is consistent with approvals falling further in that quarter than in the one before. The January holds affect only applicants from the listed countries, so they cannot explain a 96% drop in San Jose on their own.

The slowdown has been visible on the ground for months. Our reporting found oath ceremonies mostly vanishing in Cleveland and fewer N-400 approvals in greater Cincinnati.

What the backlog means for applicants

Applications still arrive faster than offices close them. Field offices received 145,872 N-400s in April to June and decided about 70,500, so the queue grew by roughly 75,000 cases in three months. New filings did fall 42% from a year earlier, which slowed the growth but did not reverse it.

Each office page shows how long its current pending caseload would take to clear at the latest quarter’s pace. With decisions this low, that figure runs past five years at the hardest-hit offices. It is a measure of how far output has fallen, not a prediction of your wait: a single policy change, such as the fingerprint checks clearing, could bring decision volumes back quickly.

What to do if your N-400 is pending

1. Find your office’s numbers. Your interview notice names your field office. Look it up on the field office hub to see its pending caseload and approval rate.
2. Keep your address current. USCIS may ask for new fingerprints or evidence. File Form AR-11 within 10 days of any move so notices reach you.
3. Answer any request quickly and completely. Requests for evidence and notices of intent to deny are expected to rise as the new background checks surface old arrests or sealed records. Get an attorney’s help if your record has any arrest, even without a conviction.
4. Prepare for the 2025 civics test if you filed on or after October 20, 2025. Our N-400 civics test guide covers the 20-question format.
5. Weigh the fee timing if you have not filed yet. DHS has proposed raising the N-400 fee; see whether to file before the proposed $1,330 fee is finalized.

If your case is well past the posted processing time for your office, you can submit a case inquiry through your USCIS online account or ask your congressional representative’s office to contact USCIS for you. Neither guarantees a decision, but both put your case on record as delayed. For the full filing process, see our step-by-step N-400 guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much have N-400 approvals dropped in 2026?

USCIS field offices approved 57,697 naturalization applications from April to June 2026, down 76 percent from 241,326 in the same quarter of 2025. Total decisions fell from 264,595 to about 70,500.

Which USCIS field offices have the biggest naturalization slowdown?

San Jose decided 408 N-400 cases in April to June 2026, down 96 percent from 9,281. Baltimore and San Francisco each fell 93 percent, and Los Angeles fell 89 percent.

How many citizenship applications are pending at USCIS?

Field offices held 742,138 pending N-400 cases on June 30, 2026, up 40 percent from 529,018 a year earlier. Houston had the most pending cases of any office, at 31,057.

Why is USCIS approving fewer citizenship applications?

USCIS cites more rigorous reviews. Since April 27, 2026 it has resubmitted fingerprints for most pending cases through an expanded FBI check, and final approvals were largely paused while those checks ran. Nationals of 39 travel-ban countries also face holds since January 1, 2026.

What is the N-400 approval rate in 2026?

Field offices approved 81.8 percent of the N-400 cases they decided in April to June 2026, down from 91.2 percent a year earlier. New Orleans approved only 45 percent and Queens 54 percent.

Which field offices are still processing N-400 cases normally?

Des Moines decided 681 cases in April to June 2026, slightly more than the 623 a year earlier. Lawrence, Massachusetts fell only 15 percent and Pittsburgh 37 percent, far below the national drop.

What should I do if my N-400 has been pending a long time?

Check your office’s caseload on the VisaVerge field office pages, keep your address current with Form AR-11, and answer any request for evidence quickly. If you are past the posted processing time, file a case inquiry or contact your congressional representative.