As of January 2026, there are 575 federally recognized Indian tribes in the United States. That figure comes from the official roster the Bureau of Indian Affairs publishes each year in the Federal Register, and it includes tribes in the lower 48 states together with Alaska Native villages.1Federal Register. Indian Entities Recognized by and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs The 575 count is not the whole picture, though. Dozens of additional tribes hold recognition only from individual state governments, and more groups are working through a federal petition process that could add to the list in future years.
Where the 575 Figure Comes From
The count is set by federal law. The Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 requires the Secretary of the Interior to publish an updated list of all recognized tribes in the Federal Register every year by January 30.2U.S. Government Publishing Office. Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 The January 2026 edition names 575 tribal entities.1Federal Register. Indian Entities Recognized by and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs administers that list, and appearing on it is what determines whether a tribe qualifies for federal funding, health services, education programs, and infrastructure support.3Indian Affairs. About Us
Once a tribe is on the list, its status cannot be revoked by an agency or through executive action. Removal requires an act of Congress.2U.S. Government Publishing Office. Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 That is why the year-to-year count is stable and tends to move upward, when it moves at all, as newly recognized tribes are added.
Where the Tribes Are Located
Alaska accounts for a striking share of the total. Of the 575 federally recognized tribes, 229 are in Alaska, close to 40 percent of the national figure. Most are village-based governments, small in population but each legally distinct.4Indian Affairs. Alaska Region The volume reflects how widely dispersed Alaska Native communities are, from the southeastern panhandle to the Arctic coast.
The rest of the list clusters in the western states. California has a large number of tribal entities, many of them rancherias with small land bases dating to early twentieth-century federal land purchases. Oklahoma hosts dozens of tribes, a legacy of nineteenth-century relocation policies that pushed eastern tribes onto lands in what was then Indian Territory. Arizona is home to some of the largest reservation-based nations in the country by both land area and population. East of the Mississippi, tribal presence on the federal list is much thinner.
Being on the federal list does not require having a reservation. The Bureau of Indian Affairs administers roughly 326 Indian land areas as federal reservations, so with 575 tribes recognized, a substantial number operate without a reservation of their own. Altogether, about 56.2 million acres are held in trust by the United States for tribes and individual Indians.5Indian Affairs. Frequently Asked Questions
Tribes Recognized Only by States
Beyond the federal list, several dozen tribes hold recognition exclusively from individual state governments. Roughly a dozen states run their own legislative or executive processes for acknowledging indigenous communities within their borders. These state-recognized tribes do not appear in the 575 figure because state recognition and federal recognition are entirely separate systems.
State recognition can open the door to state-managed grants, educational benefits, or cultural preservation programs. It does not confer sovereignty, access to federal trust funds, the ability to contract with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to run programs, or eligibility to operate gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. For many state-recognized groups, state acknowledgment is a step toward pursuing federal recognition, but a state’s decision carries no weight in the federal review.
Tribes Still Seeking Federal Recognition
A group not currently on the federal list can pursue recognition through two routes: an act of Congress or an administrative petition to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Congressional recognition is straightforward when it happens. A bill naming a specific tribe passes both chambers, gets signed, and the tribe is added to the list. The most recent example was the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians, recognized through the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020.6Congress.gov. The 574 Federally Recognized Indian Tribes in the United States
The administrative route is slower. It runs through the Office of Federal Acknowledgment and requires a petitioning group to satisfy seven cumulative criteria set out in 25 C.F.R. Part 83, covering continuous identification as an American Indian entity since 1900, a distinct community, sustained political authority, descent from a historical tribe, and related standards.7eCFR. 25 CFR 83.11 – What Are the Criteria for Acknowledgment as a Federally Recognized Indian Tribe As of early 2026, the Office of Federal Acknowledgment lists 12 groups with active petitions and another 7 groups planning to supplement earlier submissions.8Indian Affairs. Office of Federal Acknowledgment Gathering the genealogical records, historical documents, and community evidence needed to satisfy all seven criteria can take years, and agency review itself often runs a decade or longer.
Why the Number Has Changed Over Time
The 575 figure is the product of a turbulent history. Between 1953 and 1970, federal policy reversed course through House Concurrent Resolution 108, which declared that Indian tribes should be freed from federal supervision “at the earliest possible time.”9U.S. Government Publishing Office. House Concurrent Resolution 108 Congress initiated roughly 60 separate termination proceedings over the following two decades.10National Archives. Bureau of Indian Affairs Records – Termination More than a hundred tribes lost their federal standing, along with their trust lands and government services.
Beginning in the 1970s, Congress began restoring recognition to many terminated tribes on a case-by-case basis, and the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 marked a formal shift back toward tribal self-governance.11Congress.gov. S.1017 – Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act The current rule that recognition cannot be stripped without congressional action grew directly out of that history. The number of federally recognized tribes today reflects both the restorations of the past half-century and the additions from the petition and legislation processes that continue to move new tribes onto the list.