In March 2023, the Biden administration achieved two milestone breakthroughs in rebuilding the legal immigration system, in the wake of drastic cuts under the Trump administration and Covid-19’s lingering impacts. More than 6,000 refugees were resettled in the U.S. in March, the highest monthly number in six years. In the same month, the State Department issued more than one million nonimmigrant visas – the highest number in any given month in 10 years. The fact that both U.S. refugee admissions and visa issuance numbers are booming in March indicates that the administration’s concerted efforts to rebuild the legal immigration system are finally streamlining legal immigration admissions.
Unpublished data obtained by the Niskanen Center reveals that more than one million nonimmigrant visas were issued for international students, business travelers, temporary workers, tourists and other types of visitors in March – 17 percent more than in February.1 This is especially noteworthy when considering that just a few months ago, some consulates had wait times of up to 999 days.
This accelerated timeline will likely have far-reaching, tangible positive impacts. Delays in processing temporary workers to fill crucial U.S. jobs have left businesses without the labor they demonstrably need, leveling significant harm to the U.S. economy and consumers. Last fall, when visitor visa wait times soared well past the one-year mark, the U.S. Travel Association estimated that without significant improvement, the wait times would cost the U.S. economy $11.6 billion in lost tourist and business visitor revenue. Rapid visa issuance improvements have most certainly saved us from experiencing the full effects of this predicted fate.
Not only has the Biden administration managed to bounce back from pandemic-era backlogs and delays, but it has also improved efficiency in U.S. refugee admissions and visa issuance to a degree not seen in a decade. Much of this progress can be attributed to the availability of in-person interview waivers that allowed the Department of State to make historic improvements in efficiency and capacity (which is why the Niskanen Center is calling on the administration to make these interview waivers permanent).
In March 2023, the U.S. refugee admission numbers were higher than any month during the Trump administration, which made historic cuts to the resettlement program that resulted in the lowest refugee arrivals in history and hollowed out the domestic and international refugee resettlement infrastructure. The Biden administration has been trying to rebuild the refugee pipeline that was all but decimated in the Trump years — a laborious process often decried by refugee advocates as being too slow.
Still as we highlighted last month, all indicators point towards a robust, rebuilt resettlement pipeline, low arrival numbers notwithstanding. This underscores the proof that arrivals are the most lagging indicator of the system’s health. Interviews, personnel, and circuit rides —that is, overseas trips by DHS officials — have all increased significantly, demonstrating that the pipeline is rebuilt and that we can expect higher arrival totals in the coming months.
The March numbers bear this out: 6,100 refugees admissions is nearly double the total from February. The FY23 total has now eclipsed both the FY20 and FY21 totals, and is close to reaching the FY22 number — with half the fiscal year left.
When we look back at the Biden presidency, we may look back to March 2023 as a month when legal immigration officially rebounded, much as March 2020 is stamped as the month the pandemic froze international migration. The administration’s work to revive legal immigration is demonstrably improving U.S. visa issuance and refugee resettlement numbers, and we look forward to witnessing this continued trend in months ahead.
At the time of publication, the abovementioned nonimmigrant visa issuance record was based on statements from Department of State employees. The official March 2023 monthly nonimmigrant visa issuance report has since been released to the public and includes a total of 1,109,079 nonimmigrant visa issuances. This represents a 30 percent increase over the February 2023 total and the highest monthly issuance in ten years.
1. At the time of publication, the abovementioned nonimmigrant visa issuance record was based on statements from Department of State employees. The official March 2023 monthly nonimmigrant visa issuance report has since been released to the public and includes a total of 1,109,079 nonimmigrant visa issuances. This represents a 30 percent increase over the February 2023 total and the highest monthly issuance in ten years.