Are N400 processing times reducing?

[PhillyNatz 39]

Just some anecdotal evidence after browsing through forums like this - it seems lately that

Processing times are dropping with people getting interviews in 2-3 months upon application. 
 

A lot of them at low volume centers but also some at regular sized processing centers. 
 

Thoughts?

[N400NYC 380]

I think it's very difficult to draw any major conclusions, especially given the extreme difference in processing times from one office to the next. Yes, some people get interviews relatively quickly but some people wait well over a year.

 

In the NYC region, things might have improved marginally....and I say marginally as relatively speaking it is still dismal. Some in Manhattan have received interview dates recently with 11 months from date of application to interview - this is actually an improvement from 12-13 months a little while back. People in Brooklyn have been getting interviews at 8 months after applications...a while back it was probably about 10-11 months. 

 

As someone who has already waited 8 months it's a bit hard to watch other people apply long after me and already become citizens. I basically don't read those threads!

[PhillyNatz 39]

51 minutes ago, N400NYC said:

As someone who has already waited 8 months it's a bit hard to watch other people apply long after me and already become citizens. I basically don't read those threads!

LOL, fair enough 

[kline19 102]

the processing times vary depending on the backlog at the local interviewing office.

Although, I read somewhere recently that USCIS is trying to reduce the processing times overall for N400 applications.

BUT they have also proposed increase in filing fee which, one can argue, might help in reducing the processing times further not by the efficiency of USCIS but by discouraging folks from filing due to added financial strain. 

[PhillyNatz 39]

Completely agree. 
 

But don’t forget the surge in applications for over a month now with the impending fee increase 

[Sammyjayt 26]

18 hours ago, PhillyNatz said:

Just some anecdotal evidence after browsing through forums like this - it seems lately that

Processing times are dropping with people getting interviews in 2-3 months upon application. 
 

A lot of them at low volume centers but also some at regular sized processing centers. 
 

Thoughts?

Your right , I think the processing time have reduced a lil bit. I applied in August 25th and my interview will be in January.  I hope you all get your interview soon 

[AnGeLxX 154]

Montgomery, AL was showing waiting times over a year. I applied in May 2019 and had my interview on Dec 11 and have my oath ceremony on Dec 31, so total of 7 months. 

 

Good luck to you all! 

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

Seems to be. My husband applied almost exactly a year after me, and his estimate is 2 months shorter than mine was (and mine ended up being almost exact). This is at SF, high volume with long wait times - i was 12 months, he’s at 10. 

 

Theres a table somewhere of the number of n400 applications, and it seems to have peaked a little while back. It surged after 2016, presumably (anecdotally anyway) as a bunch of green card holders who’d been happily living as LPRs got worried about trump taking their green cards away and decided to naturalize. Whether or not the reason is accurate, the hump seems to have passed.

Edited December 19, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[N400NYC 380]

If there has been some improvement recently it's likely as a result of the transferring of cases to other field offices (that plan was announced around August) and not because of a drop in the number of people applying. Transferring cases to other field offices gives the primary office some scope (however limited) to address the office's backlog of unresolved/unprocessed cases.

 

Number of N400 applicants for the last 6 quarters (the data for Q3 2019 is not yet available) has been pretty stable - an average of about 200,000 new applications each quarter:

 

QUARTER	#N400 New Applications (Nationally)
April to June 2019:	209,470
Jan to  Mar 2019:	196,936
Oct to Dec 2018:	189,410
July to Sep 2018:	215,307
April to June 2018:	218,344
Jan to Mar 2018:	218,248

Edited December 19, 2019 by N400NYC

[N400NYC 380]

4 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

Seems to be. My husband applied almost exactly a year after me, and his estimate is 2 months shorter than mine was (and mine ended up being almost exact). This is at SF, high volume with long wait times - i was 12 months, he’s at 10. 

 

Theres a table somewhere of the number of n400 applications, and it seems to have peaked a little while back. It surged after 2016, presumably (anecdotally anyway) as a bunch of green card holders who’d been happily living as LPRs got worried about trump taking their green cards away and decided to naturalize. Whether or not the reason is accurate, the hump seems to have passed.

I looked back further to compare and yes there was a surge in the number of applicants in 2016/2017.....has dropped off a little recently but overall still more people applying now then when Obama was president.....increasing the fee will probably contribute to some drop in the number of applicants, but now sure how signfiicant that will be....

 

QUARTER	#N400 New Applications (Nationally)	Year End Total
April to June 2019:	209,470
Jan to  Mar 2019:	196,936
Oct to Dec 2018:	189,410	[841,309]
July to Sep 2018:	215,307
April to June 2018:	218,344
Jan to Mar 2018:	218,248
Oct to Dec 2017:	178,029	[915,551]
July to Sep 2017:	199,680
April to June 2017:	251,150
Jan to Mar 2017:	286,692
Oct to Dec 2016:	238,062	[1,015,160]
July to Sep 2016:	244,134
April to June 2016:	283,234
Jan to Mar 2016:	249,730
Oct to Dec 2015:	185,466	[796,922]
July to Sep 2015:	202,128
April to June 2015:	214,231
Jan to March 2015	195,097
Oct to Dec 2014:	161,833	[770,202]
July to Sep 2014:	177,308
April to June 2014:	231,669
Jan to Mar 2014:	199,392

[PhillyNatz 39]

Is that the reason you think for faster processing times. 
 

I think it’s more than that too, and it’s uscis has made provisions to make it faster. 
 

Because it’s 2-3 months for some people which is faster than even processing times in the past. 

[N400NYC 380]

20 hours ago, PhillyNatz said:

Is that the reason you think for faster processing times. 
 

I think it’s more than that too, and it’s uscis has made provisions to make it faster. 
 

Because it’s 2-3 months for some people which is faster than even processing times in the past. 

Ultimately it really only makes sense to pay close attention to what's happening in your local field office. The fact that someone gets an interview in 3 months somewhere in the USA doesn't change the fact that in other places people are still waiting a year (or more)...

[PhillyNatz 39]

50 minutes ago, N400NYC said:

Ultimately it really only makes sense to pay close attention to what's happening in your local field office. The fact that someone gets an interview in 3 months somewhere in the USA doesn't change the fact that in other places people are still waiting a year (or more)...

How can one tell though If processing is moved to other offices as you’ve pointed out

[N400NYC 380]

On 12/20/2019 at 6:48 PM, PhillyNatz said:

How can one tell though If processing is moved to other offices as you’ve pointed out

If a case is transferred, the applicant receives a notification about the transfer.