Form I-130 in FY 2025: Faster for Spouses, Tougher for Everyone Else
USCIS processed over a million I-130 family petitions in FY 2025, and at first glance, the numbers look encouraging. Approvals rose about 10.5% compared to the year before. Denials dipped slightly. The overall approval rate ticked up from roughly 87% to nearly 89%.
Beneath those overall numbers is a dramatic split between two different experiences in family immigration.
For the first time, USCIS is reporting I-130 data in two separate lines: one for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (spouses, parents, and unmarried children under 21) and another for preference categories (siblings, married children, and family members of green card holders).
The gap between them shows that immediate relatives have a more solid, quicker path to a Green Card than other relatives.
I-130 combined FY 2024 vs. FY 2025
| FY 2024 | FY 2025 | Change | |
| Petitions received | 981,202 | 1,002,586 | +2.2% |
| Approved | 711,767 | 786,347 | +10.5% |
| Denied | 104,782 | 101,620 | −3.0% |
| Pending | 2,194,373 | 2,357,348 | +7.4% |
| Approval rate | 87.2% | 88.6% | +1.4 pts |
Immediate relatives saw strong approvals and a reduced backlog, especially in Q4
For U.S. citizens planning to petition for a spouse, parent, or unmarried child under 21, the data provides some genuinely good news for your scenario.
I-130 Immediate relatives Q3 vs. Q4 FY2025
| Q3 FY 2025 | Q4 FY 2025 | Change | |
| Petitions received | 188,381 | 173,595 | −7.8% |
| Approved | 211,975 | 232,609 | +9.7% |
| Denied | 15,209 | 16,679 | +9.7% |
| Pending | 871,740 | 801,745 | −8.0% |
| Median processing time | 14.4 months | 13.7 months | −0.7 mo |
| Approval rate | 93.3% | 93.3% | No change |
In Q4 (July through September 2025), USCIS approved about 59,000 more immediate relative I-130 petitions than it received in new filings. That means the agency wasn’t just keeping up with incoming volume. It was actively working through older cases that had been sitting in the queue. As a result, the pending count dropped roughly 8% in a single quarter, falling from about 872,000 to about 802,000.
Processing times improved, too, ticking down slightly from 14.4 months in Q3 to 13.7 months in Q4. And the approval rate held steady at about 93%, which was consistent across both quarters and the full fiscal year.
For the full fiscal year, USCIS approved about 719,000 immediate relative I-130s against roughly 759,000 new filings. That’s a sign that the agency is close to keeping pace with demand in this category.
Other relatives saw higher approvals in Q4
For preference-category I-130s, or petitions for siblings, married children, unmarried adult children of U.S. citizens, and family members of green card holders, Q4 numbers showed some improvement over the previous quarters.
The approval rate for preference-category cases rose to about 58% in Q4, up from a low of roughly 47% in Q3. That’s a meaningful rebound.
But when we zoom out to the full fiscal year, the numbers still appear to be challenging.
The overall FY 2025 approval rate for “other relative” I-130s was about 59%, which means roughly 4 in 10 decided cases were denied. That’s a number that surprises many families, and it’s far below the 93% rate for immediate relatives.
Note that approval rates are calculated based on adjudicated cases only, and do not include cases that are still pending.
I-130 Other relatives approval rate by period, FY 2025
| Quarter | Approved | Denied | Approval Rate |
| Q1 (Oct–Dec 2024) | 18,591 | 7,371 | 71.6% |
| Q2 (Jan–Mar 2025) | 15,023 | 8,931 | 62.7% |
| Q3 (Apr–Jun 2025) | 15,627 | 17,707 | 46.9% |
| Q4 (Jul–Sep 2025) | 18,496 | 13,156 | 58.4% |
| FY 2025 Total | 67,737 | 47,165 | 59.0% |
More denials, longer waits for other relatives overall
The preference-category numbers show where the system is stretched thin, and where a strong filing may make a real difference.
Median processing time for this category was 38 months. That’s more than three years from filing to decision, and it’s getting longer, up from 36.5 months in Q3.
With over 1.55 million cases pending and growing, the backlog in this category continues to build.
If you’re filing a preference-category I-130, the combination of a high denial rate and multi-year processing means your petition needs to be especially strong on documentation. An incomplete filing or a weak evidence package in this category is far more likely to result in a denial than in the immediate relative category. Working with an experienced immigration attorney from the start can make a real difference.
FY 2025 data tells of two different I-130 experiences
If you’re an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen, USCIS is making measurable progress, and Q4 was one of the strongest quarters on record for this category. The agency actually reduced the pending backlog.
If you’re in a preference category, you’re facing a longer, more uncertain process with a meaningfully higher denial rate and a multi-year wait even after approval.
Even after approval, the wait isn’t over for many families. More than 1,087,000 approved I-130 petitions are currently waiting for a visa number to become available, which has more due to statutory visa caps than how quickly USCIS processes applications.
Either way, the data reinforces what immigration attorneys consistently advise. You want to file a complete, well-documented petition from the start.
In a system where preference-category cases face a roughly 41% denial rate and a 38-month processing time, an avoidable Request for Evidence (RFE) or documentation gap can cost a lot of time.
If you’re preparing to file an I-130, or you’ve been waiting on a decision and want to understand where your case stands, request a consultation with Manifest Law. Our attorneys can help you navigate the process and put your best case forward.
