Frequently Asked Questions
Monthly. USCIS updates case processing times on its website monthly with the latest available data. The underlying calculation always looks back over the previous six months of completed cases, so each update swaps one month of data in and one month out.
Because the posted time is the 80th percentile rather than an average, roughly one case in five is expected to exceed it. Certain factors also affect the processing time, including receipt volumes, staffing allocations, how quickly an applicant responds to a request for evidence, and policy or operational changes.
No, you cannot. USCIS may not act on your request. USCIS allows inquiries once a case has taken longer than the time to complete 93% of adjudications, or longer than 130% of the cycle time for forms measured that way. Enter your receipt date into the processing times tool, and it will tell you whether you can inquire now.
No, it begins when USCIS receives your request and ends on the date they complete it, whether approved or denied.
No, it does not. Premium processing is a separate service with its own timeline, available only for certain Form I-129, Form I-140, Form I-539, and Form I-765 filings. The posted processing times describe standard adjudication and are unaffected by it.
