U.S. Department
of Justice
Appendix G - Immigration Court Language Data
Immigration Court Proceedings Completed by Language per Fiscal Year (FY) [19]
| Language | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish | 218,502 | 195,366 | 85,400 | 240,849 | 427,868 |
| English | 20,391 | 14,701 | 9,825 | 17,850 | 21,287 |
| Portuguese | 4,820 | 4,861 | 3,783 | 9,221 | 16,021 |
| Mandarin Chinese | 6,394 | 2,645 | 1,760 | 6,113 | 7,677 |
| Punjabi | 2,863 | 2,044 | 1,255 | 4,098 | 5,208 |
| Haitian Creole | 2,639 | 2,660 | 2,173 | 6,526 | 12,692 |
| Other Languages [20] | 23,222 | 18,325 | 9,588 | 28,977 | 45,031 |
| Unknown Languages [21] | 2,863 | 127 | 64 | 86 | 137 |
| Total Case Completions | 281,694 | 240,729 | 113,848 | 313,720 | 535,921 |
Immigration Court Hearing Languages per Fiscal Year (FY)
| Language | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish | 1,360,186 | 1,084,550 | 577,261 | 1,459,416 | 2,069,116 |
| English | 138,993 | 110,937 | 62,770 | 100,575 | 125,013 |
| Portuguese | 16,064 | 13,670 | 22,616 | 106,851 | 101,145 |
| Mandarin Chinese | 40,128 | 30,472 | 15,431 | 31,121 | 43,220 |
| Punjabi | 45,469 | 21,798 | 11,537 | 28,265 | 32,458 |
| Haitian Creole | 15,059 | 10,934 | 11,020 | 52,117 | 63,496 |
| Other Languages | 176,116 | 128,098 | 74,312 | 210,079 | 316,108 |
| Unknown Languages | 23,212 | 16,127 | 8,503 | 18,221 | 18,287 |
| Total Hearings | 1,815,227 | 1,416,586 | 783,450 | 2,006,645 | 2,768,843 |
Number of “Other Languages” in Immigration Court Proceedings per Fiscal Year
| Fiscal Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other Languages in Immigration Court Proceedings | 279 | 284 | 252 | 314 | 364 |
[19] EOIR staff frequently enter and update information into the case database, so the statistics provided in this Plan are subject to change. Please also note that statistics for FYs 2020 and 2021 may have been affected by operational disruptions caused by COVID-19.
[20] Other languages include the additional languages identified by individuals in proceedings as their best language that are not specifically identified in this table and excludes the unknown languages category.
[21] “Unknown Language” refers to cases in the EOIR database that do not identify a specific language. This code is used when the Notice to Appear, obtained from DHS, does not indicate the respondent’s best language. In other cases, EOIR is unable to determine the language because the respondent fails to appear at a scheduled hearing.