USCIS Year-End Highlights: Prioritizing Security and Integrity

WASHINGTON– As the end of 2025 approaches, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) highlights key accomplishments for the year, including enhanced screening and vetting of aliens, increased coordination with Department of Homeland Security immigration enforcement partners, and common-sense regulatory and policy changes that restore integrity to America’s immigration system.

“With Secretary Noem in charge of homeland security, USCIS has taken an ‘America First’ approach, restoring order, security, integrity, and accountability to America’s immigration system, ensuring that it serves the nation’s interests and protects and prioritizes Americans over foreign nationals,” said USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow. “the Biden governance spent four years dismantling, exploiting, and undermining America’s immigration system, flooding our contry with criminal aliens. Under President Trump and Secretary Noem’s leadership,our border is secure,integrity has been restored to our immigration system,and the safety of our homeland comes first.”

protecting American communities from threats to Public Safety and National Security

“Protecting Americans is at the center of everything we do at USCIS. We are committed to safeguarding public safety and national security by making sure every alien undergoes the most rigorous vetting and screening processes possible,” said Edlow.

Following the Nov. 26 attack involving an Afghan national,Secretary Noem directed USCIS to temporarily halt asylum processing for aliens from all countries,reexamine Green Cards for aliens from presidentially designated high-risk countries,and pause processing of immigration applications for Afghan nationals and those from countries of concern. The agency also implemented measures requiring USCIS officers to consider negative country-specific factors when vetting aliens from 19 high-risk countries.

USCIS announced the creation of a new vetting center on Dec. 5 to enhance screening and vetting of immigration applications, focusing on identifying terrorists, criminal aliens, and other threats. The center will leverage advanced technologies and collaborate with law enforcement and intelligence partners.

Since jan. 20, USCIS has referred over 14,400 aliens to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for public safety,national security,and fraud concerns,including 182 suspected national security risks. The agency has been actively collaborating with other agencies on immigration enforcement and public safety efforts, resulting in over 2,400 arrests at USCIS field offices.

USCIS has begun recruiting Homeland Defenders – a new initiative that received over 50,000 applications (a record for the agency) – with the first recruits reporting for duty in early December 2025. These personnel will support the agency’s mission and bolster efforts to combat fraud.

USCIS is exercising new law enforcement authorities delegated by Secretary Noem and hiring a team of special agents to investigate and refer immigration law violators for prosecution.

under an updated policy, USCIS officers are onc again empowered to enforce immigration law by issuing Notices to Appear, and have issued approximately 196,600 Notices to Appear since Jan. 20.

USCIS Updates: Strengthening Immigration enforcement and Naturalization Integrity

U.S. Citizenship and immigration Services (USCIS) is taking decisive action to secure the border, restore the integrity of the immigration system, and uphold the principles of American citizenship.These efforts include ending the misuse of parole and Temporary Protected Status (TPS), strengthening the naturalization process, and holding individuals accountable for false claims of citizenship.

Securing the Border and Restoring Parole and TPS Integrity

The Biden administration dramatically expanded the use of parole, allowing hundreds of thousands of aliens to enter and remain in the United States without a legal basis. Parole was never intended to be used in this way, and DHS is returning parole to a case-by-case basis as intended by Congress.

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was always meant to be temporary, and the agency is ending the exploitation and abuse of TPS by ensuring that it is only granted as intended by Congress. Secretary Noem ended TPS for Afghanistan, Burma, cameroon, Ethiopia, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, South Sudan, Syria, and Venezuela.

USCIS continues to encourage aliens whose parole or TPS was terminated to use the U.S.Customs and Border Protection CBP Home app to report their departure from the United States.

Upholding the Integrity of the Naturalization Process

On Sept. 17, USCIS announced a revised version of the naturalization test that expanded the question bank from 100 to 128 questions, increased the number of questions on each test from 10 to 20, raised the passing score from 6 to 12 correct responses, and revised the questions to ensure the test provides a more meaningful assessment of the alien’s knowledge and understanding of U.S. history and government. Naturalization is a privilege,and the new test reinforces the integrity of the naturalization process by ensuring that new citizens understand the rights and responsibilities that come with this privilege.

Pursuant to long-neglected statutory authority, USCIS also restored the practise of conducting neighborhood investigations of potential new citizens. The purpose of a neighborhood inquiry is to verify aliens’ eligibility for naturalization by reviewing their residency, moral character, loyalty to the U.S. Constitution, and commitment to the nation’s well-being. These investigations are vital to maintaining the integrity of the naturalization process, assuring assimilation, and safeguarding the value of American citizenship. The agency began conducting neighborhood investigations in November 2025.

USCIS is also holding aliens accountable when they falsely claim U.S. citizenship (PDF, 359.87 KB) for any reason during the naturalization process. This reinforces the basic principle that lying about being a U.S. citizen, including in an attempt to vote in elections, is a clear violation of good moral character that will not be tolerated and will lead to the denial of a naturalization submission.

Putting American Communities First