U.S. immigration statistics cover several different processes: immigrant visas issued overseas, naturalization, and enforcement encounters. The figures below separate those measures by fiscal year, visa category, region, and country so that they are not treated as interchangeable counts.
Contents
- Immigrant visas at a glance
- Family-sponsored immigration
- Employment-based and special immigrant visas
- Diversity visas and regional patterns
- Countries with the most immigrant visas
- Naturalization and enforcement in FY 2024
Immigrant visas at a glance
The U.S. Department of State’s Report of the Visa Office 2023, Table I, recorded 562,976 immigrant visas issued at foreign service posts during FY 2023. This is a visa-issuance measure: it counts immigrant visas issued overseas, not every person who may have entered the United States through every immigration pathway.
The largest reported category was immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, with 245,696 visas. Family-sponsored preference visas totaled 194,419. Employment-based preference visas totaled 46,508, while diversity immigrant visas totaled 55,076. These category totals describe different statutory pathways and should not be added to unrelated FY 2024 measures later in this article.
| FY 2023 immigrant-visa category | Visas issued |
|---|---|
| All immigrant visas at foreign service posts | 562,976 |
| Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens | 245,696 |
| Family-sponsored preference | 194,419 |
| Employment-based preference | 46,508 |
| Diversity immigrant visas | 55,076 |
The category breakdown shows why a single “immigration total” can be misleading. The Department of State tables classify visas by legal preference or program, while other agencies publish separate measures for admissions, applications, naturalization, or enforcement activity.
Family-sponsored immigration
Immediate-relative visas made up a substantial portion of the FY 2023 immigrant visas issued at foreign service posts. Table II of the Report of the Visa Office 2023 lists 73,212 visas for spouses of U.S. citizens, 15,374 for conditional spouses of U.S. citizens, 46,456 for children of U.S. citizens, and 110,654 for parents of U.S. citizens.
These figures distinguish relationships rather than describing one undifferentiated family category. A spouse, conditional spouse, child, and parent appear as separate lines in the Department of State’s reporting, so the measurement remains tied to the visa class shown in the source.
Family-sponsored preference visas totaled 194,419 in Table I. Table II reports 23,783 first-preference family visas. Second-preference exempt family visas totaled 64,914. Second-preference subject visas for spouses or children of lawful permanent residents totaled 16,121, and second-preference subject visas for unmarried sons or daughters of lawful permanent residents totaled 27,588.
The same table reports 17,284 third-preference family visas and 44,729 fourth-preference family visas. Together, these numbers illustrate the range of preference classifications used in the FY 2023 overseas visa statistics. They should be read as reported visa counts for the named classes, rather than as estimates of the entire U.S. foreign-born population or all family-based immigration activity.
Employment-based and special immigrant visas
Employment-based preference visas totaled 46,508 in FY 2023 according to Table I of the Report of the Visa Office 2023. Table II provides a more detailed view of the employment classifications. Employment first-preference visas totaled 4,611, and employment second-preference visas totaled 6,533.
Employment third-preference skilled worker visas totaled 20,013. Employment third-preference other worker visas totaled 5,930. The employment fourth-preference category included 264 minister of religion visas, 733 visas for certain U.S. government employees, and 50 religious worker visas.
The report also lists EB-5 visa counts by investment-area classification. EB-5 visas outside targeted areas totaled 42. EB-5 visas in targeted rural or high-unemployment areas totaled 127. EB-5 investor pilot program visas in targeted areas totaled 8,181.
| Employment-related FY 2023 classification | Visas issued |
|---|---|
| Employment first preference | 4,611 |
| Employment second preference | 6,533 |
| Third preference skilled workers | 20,013 |
| Third preference other workers | 5,930 |
| EB-5 investor pilot program, targeted areas | 8,181 |
The EB-5 lines are especially important to keep separate because the source reports different geographic or program designations. The 8,181 visas in the targeted-area investor pilot program are not the same measurement as the 42 visas outside targeted areas or the 127 in targeted rural or high-unemployment areas.
The Department of State’s Table IX also recorded 21,040 special immigrant visas issued. That total is a separate reporting line from the employment-preference and family-preference totals above.
Diversity visas and regional patterns
Diversity immigrant visas totaled 55,076 in FY 2023, according to Table I of the Report of the Visa Office 2023. This program total is distinct from family-sponsored and employment-based preference totals.
Table III reports immigrant visas by broad region. Asia recorded 211,611 immigrant visas, and North America recorded 210,287. Africa recorded 58,984, while Europe recorded 45,946. South America recorded 34,366, and Oceania recorded 1,782.
| Region in Table III | Immigrant visas |
|---|---|
| Asia | 211,611 |
| North America | 210,287 |
| Africa | 58,984 |
| Europe | 45,946 |
| South America | 34,366 |
| Oceania | 1,782 |
The regional figures use the geography presented by the Department of State. They are not population estimates, and they do not represent the number of people from each region living in the United States. They describe immigrant visas reported for FY 2023 in the source table.
The regional distribution also shows why country-level and region-level statistics answer different questions. A region total groups multiple countries under one heading, while a country line identifies the reported visa count for a particular country or place of birth. Neither level should be interpreted as a forecast of future immigration.
Countries with the most immigrant visas
Among the country figures listed in Table III, Mexico received 68,582 immigrant visas in FY 2023. The Dominican Republic received 54,812, Cuba received 38,341, and the Philippines received 34,563. India received 32,161, and Vietnam received 31,389.
China mainland-born applicants accounted for 19,786 immigrant visas. Afghanistan accounted for 20,554, Bangladesh for 15,577, and Nepal for 7,147. Nigeria accounted for 6,473.
Other reported country totals included Colombia with 7,537 immigrant visas, Russia with 5,698, Brazil with 5,464, Canada with 2,039, Great Britain and Northern Ireland with 2,105, and Japan with 1,323.
| Country or reported place of birth | Immigrant visas in FY 2023 |
|---|---|
| Mexico | 68,582 |
| Dominican Republic | 54,812 |
| Cuba | 38,341 |
| Philippines | 34,563 |
| India | 32,161 |
| Vietnam | 31,389 |
| Afghanistan | 20,554 |
| China mainland-born | 19,786 |
| Bangladesh | 15,577 |
| Nepal | 7,147 |
These country statistics are counts of immigrant visas in the Department of State’s FY 2023 Table III. The wording “China mainland-born” is retained because it is the label used in that table. The figures are not a ranking of all immigration, all arrivals, or all foreign-born residents.
Naturalization and enforcement in FY 2024
USCIS naturalized 818,500 new citizens in FY 2024, according to USCIS Naturalization Statistics. Naturalization is a citizenship outcome and therefore measures something different from an immigrant visa issued at a foreign service post. The FY 2024 date and USCIS source should remain attached to this figure when comparing it with the FY 2023 visa statistics.
CBP recorded 2,901,142 total enforcement encounters in FY 2024, according to CBP Enforcement Statistics FY 2024. An enforcement encounter is not the same as an immigrant visa, an admission, or a naturalization. It is a separate enforcement measure reported by a different agency and for a different fiscal year.
| Measure | Fiscal year | Reported count | Source label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Immigrant visas at foreign service posts | FY 2023 | 562,976 | Report of the Visa Office 2023, Table I |
| New citizens naturalized | FY 2024 | 818,500 | USCIS Naturalization Statistics |
| Total enforcement encounters | FY 2024 | 2,901,142 | CBP Enforcement Statistics FY 2024 |
Read together, these measures show the breadth of U.S. immigration reporting without turning unlike measures into one total. The Department of State’s FY 2023 tables describe overseas immigrant visa issuance; USCIS’s FY 2024 figure describes completed naturalizations; and CBP’s FY 2024 figure describes enforcement encounters. Each number is most useful when its agency, fiscal year, geography, and definition remain explicit.