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EXPLAINER · EVERY RULE QUOTED FROM AN OFFICIAL SOURCE · CHECKED OCTOBER 18, 2026

How USCIS processing times work

How USCIS calculates the processing times it publishes, what the number does and does not mean, and how the case inquiry date is worked out.

USCIS publishes processing times for selected forms and offices. It says the purpose is to show how long cases generally take, and when a question about a case can be sent in.[1]

The numbers are updated every month.[2]

What the number measures

The published processing time is how long it took USCIS to finish 80% of the cases it decided over the last six months.[3]

For each case, the time counted runs from the day USCIS received the filing to the day it was completed, meaning approved or denied.[4]

USCIS's example

USCIS walks through an example using Form N-400.[5]

  • One application received Jan. 24, 2022 and completed March 5, 2022 took 41 days.[6]
  • The same calculation is done for every N-400 completed in March 2022 and the five months before it.[7]
  • If 800 of 1,000 completed applications (80%) were finished within two months, the page shows two months.[8]

What the number does not mean

The figure looks backward: it describes how long completed cases took, and USCIS calls it a reference point.[9][10]

USCIS lists many things that affect how long a case takes, including how many filings it receives, staffing, how long the filer takes to answer a request for more information, and policy changes.[11]

The case inquiry date

USCIS only accepts questions about some cases. Its processing times page has a tool that takes the receipt date from the receipt notice and returns either an estimated date for asking or a link to submit a question.[12][13][14]

That date uses a different, higher percentage than the published time: the time to complete 93% of cases, minus how long the case has already been waiting.[15]

  • USCIS's example: a form filed Jan. 1, 2021, checked Jan. 1, 2022, with a 93% time of 13 months, gives 13 minus 12, or one month.[16]
  • If the result is negative, a question can be submitted.[17]

See it in the data

Each processing time USCIS publishes, by form and office, is recorded over time on the USCIS processing times pages.

Where the receipt date comes from is covered in Receipt and approval notices.

This page explains general rules in plain English. It is not legal advice and does not tell you what applies to your case. Each numbered source below is the official page the sentence comes from; read it before relying on anything here.

Sources

  1. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “We display case processing times for select forms and locations to let you know how long it generally takes to process benefit requests and when you can contact us with questions about your case.”
  2. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “We update case processing times on the website monthly with the latest available data.”
  3. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “The processing time displayed on the USCIS website is the amount of time it took us to complete 80% of adjudicated cases over the last six months.”
  4. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Processing time is defined as the number of days (or months) that have elapsed between the date USCIS received an application, petition, or request and the date USCIS completed the application, petition, or request (that is, approved or denied it) in a given six-month period.”
  5. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “For example, if we received a Form N‑400 on Jan. 24, 2022”
  6. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “if we received a Form N‑400 on Jan. 24, 2022, and completed adjudication of the application on March 5, 2022, then the processing time for that specific application is 41 days.”
  7. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “This calculation is done for every Form N‑400 we completed in March 2022 and the five months prior to March 2022 (a six-month period).”
  8. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “if we completed 1,000 Form N‑400 applications in the previous six months, and 80% (or 800) of them were completed within 60 days (or two months), then the processing times webpage will display two months as the processing time for Form N‑400 in May 2022.”
  9. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Processing times generally reflect how long we have taken to complete applications, petitions, or requests.”
  10. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Processing time information is provided as a reference point for how long we have taken to complete most cases.”
  11. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Many factors may affect how long it takes USCIS to complete an application, petition or request, such as the number of applications, petitions, or requests we receive, workload and staffing allocations, the time a benefit requestor takes responding to a request for more information, as well as policy and operational changes, among other factors.”
  12. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “we allow questions only for certain cases.”
  13. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Your receipt date can be found on your receipt notice.”
  14. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “You will be provided either an estimated date for when you can ask about your case or a link to submit a question.”
  15. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Case Inquiry Date = [time to complete 93% of adjudicated cases] − [today's date − received date]”
  16. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “Case Inquiry Date = [13 months] − [Jan. 1, 2022 − Jan. 1, 2021] = [13 months] − [12 months] = one month”
  17. USCIS, More Information About Case Processing Times. Last checked October 18, 2026.
    “If the calculation for the case inquiry date produces a negative number, you will be able to submit a question about your case.”