Locations With the Most Family Green Cards Pending
Florida has the most family green card applicants impacted by the shift to consular processing, with over 55,000 cases pending
Source: Manifest Law analysis of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data | Image Credit: Manifest Law
Despite the institutional precedence to process more family-based applications than other categories, there remains a growing backlog of pending applications, leaving many families uncertain about the legal status of their loved ones in the United States. Pending family-based green card applications were concentrated most heavily in the country’s largest immigrant-destination states. Florida field offices had 55,512 family-based green card applications in fiscal year 2025, the most of any state and over 7,000 more than California, which ranked second with 48,028 pending cases. Texas followed closely with 39,183 cases, while New York ranked fourth with 35,919. Together, those four states accounted for 178,642 pending cases, nearly half of all family-based green card pending applications processed through field offices. The pattern reflects where many immigrant families already live. Census Bureau data show that California, Texas, Florida and New York are among the states with the largest foreign-born populations, giving them larger pools of residents who may be eligible to sponsor relatives through family-based pathways.
At the field office level, the largest pool of pending cases were concentrated in major metropolitan hubs, led by the Dallas field office with 12,685 cases pending, Houston (12,607), Chicago (12,580), and Newark (11,837). Rather than depending on one dominant office, Florida’s statewide backlog was different. Approvals in the Sunshine State were spread across several high-volume field office areas, including Orlando, Tampa, Oakland Park, West Palm Beach, and Miami.
Pending family-based field office totals are best understood as a measure of where domestic adjustment cases are handled, not as a complete count of all family-based immigration tied to a state or metro area. Adjustment of status applies to applicants who are already in the United States, while relatives applying from abroad generally complete the process through consular processing at a U.S. embassy or consulate. Moving forward, USCIS’s policy change will likely push the vast majority of pending cases abroad, leaving the cities and states with the largest backlogs most impacted.
For detailed information on how the data analysis was conducted, see the methodology section below. For complete results, see Which U.S. Cities Have the Most Family Green Card Holders? on Manifest Law.
What Lies Ahead for Family Green Cards?
In August 2025, USCIS issued updated guidance for both pending and newly filed family-based petitions, intended to strengthen screening and fraud review. While the core family sponsorship categories remain legally intact, the agency has adopted a highly compliance-focused posture regarding eligibility, documentation, and relationship validity. For families, this means that precise filings and robust, well-documented evidence are more critical than ever to successfully navigate the heightened scrutiny now applied to family-based petitions.
The broader administrative environment suggests continued attention on the mechanics of legal immigration. With domestic field office capacity no longer the primary bottleneck for green card finalization, the system's efficiency will now rely heavily on the State Department’s international consular network and its ability to absorb the displaced domestic caseload. The near-term outlook for family-based immigration will largely depend on how these overseas processing requirements are implemented, the impact of anticipated legal challenges to the memo, and whether future administrative actions alter these new eligibility and processing mandates.
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