A recent report reveals that the U.S. government is granting citizenship at the fastest pace seen in the last decade. This acceleration comes after efforts to eliminate delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and stricter policies instituted during Donald Trump’s presidency. The surge in new citizens, often seen before elections, could significantly influence future votes, as noted in a New York Times article.
Xiao Wang, the CEO of Boundless, an organization leveraging governmental data to study immigration patterns and assist individuals through the application process, highlighted to the publication the significant impact this increase in naturalization could have on upcoming elections. Wang emphasized, “Every citizenship application could be a vote that decides Senate seats or even the presidency,” pointing to the potential political ramifications.
As the report points out, processing times for citizenship applications have decreased to levels comparable to 2013 and 2014, with an application now taking less than five months to process. This efficiency has contributed to over 3.3 million immigrants obtaining U.S. citizenship during President Joe Biden’s tenure, as the 2024 fiscal year approaches its end.
The shift towards faster processing times is partly credited to changes implemented by the Biden administration. Upon entering office in 2021, President Biden signed an executive order aimed at dismantling the stringent immigration policies of his predecessor and rejuvenating trust in the U.S.’s legal immigration framework. This executive action included measures to “substantially reduce current naturalization processing times.”
Further, the Biden administration has streamlined the naturalization application from 20 to 14 pages and adjusted the fee structure: While raising the application fee from $640 to $710 in April, it has also made fee waivers more accessible for applicants with limited financial resources.
