U.S. Immigration Courts Swear In 82 New Judges

The Department of Justice administered the oath of office to 77 permanent and five temporary immigration judges on Wednesday. The new judges bring the total number of immigration judges to nearly 700. The department reported 153 permanent appointments in the current fiscal year.

The Executive Office for Immigration Review conducted the swearing-in as part of a federal hiring initiative. Many of the new judges previously worked as Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorneys, federal prosecutors, or other government counsel.

The department stated the backlog of immigration cases has fallen from roughly 4 million to 3.5 million after more than 1 million cases were resolved since early last year. Officials said the additional judges will increase the pace of case adjudications.

Federal job listings have described the positions as "deportation judges" and listed base salaries from $159,951 to $207,500. The postings also offered signing and retention incentives worth up to 25 percent of base pay in high-demand areas.

An analysis by Reuters reported that more than 100 sitting immigration judges left their positions in recent months. Data from the American Immigration Council showed the backlog at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services rose from 3.5 million cases in late 2015 to roughly 11.6 million by mid-2025.