How many lawful permanent residents (green card holders) are in the United States in 2025?
Executive summary
Available reporting and government releases in the provided sources do not give a single definitive 2025 headcount of lawful permanent residents (LPRs, “green card holders”) in the United States; one widely cited government figure — 12.8 million LPRs — is reported in Newsweek and attributed there to the Office of Homeland Security Statistics [1]. Other sources discuss policy changes and reviews affecting millions of green card holders (some outlets cite figures such as 3.3 million affected by a 19-country review), but those are counts of subgroups, not the national total [2] [3].
1. The headline number people quote — where it appears and what it means
Newsweek reports that “the Office of Homeland Security Statistics estimated there were 12.8 million green card holders living in the U.S.”; that is the clearest single nationwide LPR total in the fetched items [1]. The Newsweek piece frames that number in coverage of new federal scrutiny of green card approvals and notes policy changes that could affect holders [1].
2. Government visa publications show process detail, not an LPR census
The U.S. Department of State’s Visa Bulletins and Diversity Visa pages explain visa availability, fiscal-year ceilings and program timing (for example, DV-2026 numbers and DV-2025 entitlement deadlines) but do not provide an annual total count of current lawful permanent residents [4] [5] [6] [7]. These documents are operational immigration-law references, not population estimates [4] [6].
3. Multiple outlets report large subgroups targeted for review — numbers differ
News reporting and advocacy outlets describe policy directives that would touch millions of LPRs from particular countries. For example, some reports say the administration ordered re-examination of green cards for nationals of 19 countries; NBC and BBC report the directive and link it to national-security screening steps, but they do not supply a new national LPR total [3] [8]. A World Socialist Web Site article asserts the review would affect “3.3 million green card holders” from those countries and provides a country-by-country breakdown, but that is reporting of the affected-group size, not an official overall LPR headcount [2].
4. Why different numbers circulate — scope, source and definition
Numbers vary because sources measure different things: (a) total lawful permanent residents living in the U.S. (a population estimate), (b) the number of green cards issued or adjusted in particular periods, or (c) how many LPRs come from a set of “countries of concern.” The Office of Homeland Security Statistics figure cited by Newsweek (12.8 million) reads like a total-population estimate, while the “3.3 million” figure found in activist reporting describes the subset from 19 countries subjected to review [1] [2]. Visa bulletins and State Department pages focus on annual visa availability and legal deadlines rather than counting residents [4] [6] [7].
5. What the sources say about recent policy context that affects counts
Several articles emphasize policy shifts — re-examination directives, asylum pauses, expanded biometric collection and new vetting rules — that could change the administrative status of some LPRs or slow processing of applications, but they do not itself revise the population estimate [3] [9] [10]. Coverage notes that USCIS began reexamining green cards for people from 19 countries after security concerns; NBC, BBC and CNN report the directive and link it to White House direction [3] [8] [11].
6. Limitations, caveats and what’s not in the available reporting
Available sources do not provide a single, contemporaneous official 2025 LPR census figure beyond the Newsweek-cited 12.8 million estimate; no source here offers the methodology or date for that figure in the excerpts provided [1]. Official statistical series that typically report LPR totals (for example, DHS Yearbook or Office of Homeland Security Statistics full releases) are not present among the supplied documents; therefore I cannot verify the 12.8 million number’s vintage or calculation using only these sources [1] [4].
7. Bottom line for readers seeking a reliable 2025 total
If you need a single, defensible 2025 count, the best number in the supplied material is the 12.8 million figure reported by Newsweek as coming from the Office of Homeland Security Statistics; readers should treat that as an estimate reported in secondary press coverage and seek the primary DHS/Office of Homeland Security Statistics release for methods and date [1]. For understanding who might be affected by new enforcement actions, consult the reporting on the 19-country reexamination and related policy announcements, which identify large subgroup counts (such as the 3.3 million figure in one outlet) but are separate from a national total [3] [2].
If you want, I can locate and cite the original DHS/Office of Homeland Security Statistics release or DHS Yearbook table to confirm the methodology and the exact date of the 12.8 million estimate. Available sources do not mention that primary release in the excerpts you provided [1].