Analysis

I-140 denial rates by preference, and how they have moved

EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 denials as a share of decisions, since 2014.

A denial share is denials as a proportion of the decisions actually made — never of the petitions filed, because a category with a long queue decides only part of what it receives in any year.

Denial share by preference

Fiscal year EB-1 EB-2 EB-3
FY2026 27.0% 4.1% 1.2%
FY2025 25.0% 17.5% 2.1%
FY2024 15.3% 17.6% 2.1%
FY2023 14.7% 11.2% 2.4%
FY2022 15.3% 7.2% 3.5%
FY2021 15.7% 6.1% 3.0%
FY2020 18.2% 5.9% 5.7%
FY2019 19.8% 6.0% 9.4%
FY2018 18.6% 5.8% 10.6%
FY2017 14.9% 6.1% 11.3%

USCIS I-140 decisions by preference

Source — USCIS, Form I-140 Receipts and Current Status by Preference and Country. Public domain.

Every figure above is read from the USCIS quarterly data release and rebuilt each time a new one is imported — this piece was last rebuilt 22 minutes ago. Nothing here is legal advice, and ImmigrationAll is not affiliated with USCIS or any government agency.