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USCIS Processing Times

How to read the official processing-time tool, what its two numbers actually mean, and when a case is late enough that you can ask USCIS about it.

Quick answer

USCIS publishes current processing times per form and per office on its own tool. This page explains how to read it. We do not reprint the numbers here, because they change constantly and a figure copied onto this page would be wrong within weeks — the official tool is the only current source.

Open the official USCIS processing times tool (opens the official government page in a new tab)

The tool gives you two different numbers

People often read only the first one. The second is the one that decides whether USCIS will answer a question about your case.

The processing time
A range describing how long most cases of that form type, at that office, have recently taken to finish. It is a description of past cases, not a promise about yours.
The case inquiry date
A receipt date. If your receipt notice is dated before it, USCIS considers your case outside normal processing time and will accept an inquiry. If your receipt date is after it, an inquiry will simply be returned.

How to read it for your case

  1. Find your form number on your receipt notice, Form I-797C. It is printed near the top, for example I-130, I-485, N-400 or I-765.

  2. On the USCIS tool, choose that form, then the subtype or category if it asks, then the office or service center handling your case.

  3. The service center is identified by the first three letters of your receipt number. Our USCIS case status page explains those codes.

  4. Compare the case inquiry date the tool shows against the receipt date printed on your own notice.

Why your case can take longer than the published time

The published range describes typical cases. Several ordinary things move a case outside it, and none of them means something has gone wrong.

  • A Request for Evidence stops the clock until USCIS receives your response.
  • Different offices handle the same form at different speeds, and cases are sometimes transferred between them.
  • An interview requirement, or a background check that takes longer for some applicants than others.
  • A change in your address, your circumstances or the underlying petition while the case is pending.

If your case is outside normal processing time

Once your receipt date is earlier than the case inquiry date shown for your form and office, you can submit a case inquiry to USCIS. That is a specific process with its own form and its own expectations.

How to submit a USCIS case inquiry (e-Request)

Premium processing

USCIS offers faster adjudication for certain form types and categories, for an additional fee. Which forms qualify, and the fee, both change — USCIS publishes the current list and amount on its own premium processing page. Not every form is eligible, and paying for it does not change the decision, only the speed of it.

Before you rely on this page

  • This is general information about U.S. immigration processes. It is not legal advice and it is not a substitute for advice about your own case. No attorney-client relationship is formed by viewing this website or submitting information.
  • Only the official government source is authoritative. Where this page and the linked USCIS, U.S. Department of State or EOIR page say different things, the government page controls.
  • Immigration law, forms, fees and filing requirements change frequently, sometimes on nothing more than a Federal Register notice. Verify current USCIS requirements on the official page before you file anything.
  • We do not publish processing-time estimates. Real times shift constantly and vary by office and case type, so any number printed here would be wrong within weeks. Check the official page instead: USCIS processing times (opens the official government page in a new tab)
  • Nothing here predicts or guarantees an outcome, and no filing fees or legal fees are quoted on this page. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Source and date: written from the official government pages linked on this page, last read on September 18, 2026. If that date looks old to you, treat the government page as current and this page as out of date.

Worried your case is taking too long?

An Imigrar attorney can read your notices with you, tell you whether your case is genuinely delayed, and explain what can actually be done about it.

Request a free consultationCall 786-791-3106