At least 100,000 'green cards' could go "in the trash" due to delays at USCIS.

Due to delays at the US Citizenship and Immigration Services ( USCIS ) office, at least 100,000 employment-based green cards could “go to waste” this year.

The agency's delays intensified with the COVID-19 pandemic , affecting the 1.2 million immigrants , a high percentage of the technology sector, indicates a report by The Wall Street Journal .

"The situation complicates what has already been a one-year wait for many of the 1.2 million immigrants ... who have been waiting in line to become permanent residents in the US," warns that newspaper.

It points out that USCIS began its fiscal year in October 2020 with 120,000 green cards more than the 140,000 annually it issued, but there are less than two months until the end of fiscal year 2021 and it is difficult for it to achieve its goal.

"There is no recent data on exactly how many employment-based green cards have been processed," the report says.

A State Department official, Charlie Oppenheim, quoted by the newspaper estimated that USCIS would end September with approximately 100,000 green cards pending processing.

The report adds that the agency, whose director Ur Mendoza Jaddou was recently confirmed by the Senate , has been plagued with problems, including a lack of resources and reduced processing capacity.

"The average application for a green card is taking about 10.5 months to complete, two months more than last year," the newspaper quotes from official data. "In some extreme cases, green card applications have been waiting up to five years, the data shows."