Trump immigration agency flags 182 national security risks, issues record 196K notices to appear in 2025

FIRST ON FOX: The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) revealed new figures detailing the result of the Trump’s administration’s first year of cracking down on illegal immigration and removing criminal migrants from the country.

The agency, which handles lawful immigration under the umbrella of Secretary Kristi Noem’s Department of Homeland Security, told Fox News Digital that since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, USCIS has referred more than 14,000 immigration cases to ICE for national security and fraud concerns, with 182 being confirmed or suspected to be national security risks. 

USCIS also told Fox that the agency’s Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) completed 19,300 fraud cases and identified fraud in roughly 65% of reviewed cases. Additionally, FDNS completed more than 6,500 site visits and conducted 19,500 social media checks for potential immigrants’ online posts. 

“USCIS has taken an ‘America First’ approach, restoring order, security, integrity, and accountability to America’s immigration system, ensuring that it serves the nation’s interests and protects and prioritizes Americans over foreign nationals,” USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow told Fox News Digital in a statement.

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Edlow’s agency issued a record-breaking 196,000 Notices to Appear (NTAs) to put migrants into removal proceedings.

More than 2,400 arrests were made at USCIS field offices under the Trump administration’s watch.

USCIS also noted steps taken to mitigate immigration concerns amid security threats. After an Afghan national was accused of killing a National Guard member, Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, and severely injured Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe during an attack in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 26, the agency froze asylum processing for all countries and launched a re-examination of every green card for high-risk nations.

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In September, the top immigrant vetting wing of DHS strengthened the citizenship test, raising the total number of questions from 100 to 128, and increasing the number of questions on each individual test from 10 to 20. The qualifying passing score was changed from 6 correct answers to 12 correct answers.

USCIS also matched the Department of Homeland Security hiring campaign to recruit more Americans to become immigration officers. In early November, Fox News Digital reported that more than 200,000 individuals applied to be ICE officers, and USCIS told Fox more than 50,000 individuals have applied to become “homeland defenders,” previously titled immigration services officers.

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Homeland defenders are responsible for determining whether legal migrants are eligible for green cards, extended visas or citizenship.

The agency’s actions are reflective of a campaign promise made by Trump to rein in what he called former President Joe Biden’s “flawed immigration policies” during his address to the nation last week.

“In less than a year, President Trump has delivered some of the most historic and consequential achievements in presidential history—and this Administration is just getting started,” Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in a statement over the weekend.

“In record-time we have secured the border, taken the fight to cartels, and arrested thousands upon thousands of criminal illegal aliens,” Noem added. “Though 2025 was historic, we won’t rest until the job is done.”  

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on X @MizellPreston