This post will cover a lot of the common questions surrounding the USCIS Process and Case Statuses.
For starters, every USCIS Filing must be processed by a USCIS Officer. It is this officer that has complete control over a filing, NOT:
Moreover, you do not normally get to know the officer handling your case. Nor, can you talk directly with that officer.
An Immigration Officer is like any other officer. Let us make it more commonplace. Have you ever had something stolen? If not, let’s pretend your phone was stolen at a Walmart, taken right from your shopping cart.
A detective would rely on a police report, security footage, photos, testimony, ect. The detective must work with numerous people to solve the crime. The Detective cannot give an estimated time when (1) the criminal will be caught, (2) when the phone will be returned to you, and (3) when the investigation would complete. The detective finishes the investigation “when it is finished.”
The same occurs with a USCIS Officer, the immigration officer receives “paper, forms, evidence,” but then must coordinate with other officers, other agencies, numerous systems, and conduct an investigation.
Note: Investigations cannot be rushed. Filings are handled “first come, first serve.”
That is a common expression for the backlog. Filings are processed in the order they are received. A filing cannot be expedited (cut in line) unless it is life-and-death or in the government’s best interest.
Common requests to expedite / skip in line:
If it is not in the government interest, do not expect the government to expedite your filing. An unwarranted expedite request may even delay your filing if it was taken out of line or left on a non-processing officer’s desk.
There are two types of officers when you call the USCIS Contact Center:
Calling USCIS does not mean you can speak with a level 2 officer, that ability is determined by a level 1 representative.
If you are inside the US, you can call USCIS here: 1-800-375-5283
If you are outside of the US, you can call USCIS here: 212-620-3418
The Online Case Status is the same information you would get from speaking with a USCIS representative. The USCIS Case Status can be found here by inputting your receipt number which is located on the top left section of your receipt notice into the following webpage: https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do
You can normally communicate with an immigration officer or a level 2 representative in 3 situations:
In short, No.
Calling USCIS to get the status of your case does not help speed up it’s processing. It would only state the information provided on the online status, which can easily be viewed at: https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do
The times you might be able to speak with a level 2 officer is when the case is outside of USCIS Processing time or there are issues with the mail and a level 2 officer may have access to the file or the system the file is in.
If USCIS wants more evidence or requires an explanation, a USCIS Notice would arrive by mail and the response to their request would be required by mail as well.
Immigration Officers are processing the filing, conducting the background check, and investigating many aspects of a filing. When the officer is done with the filing, everyone is notified by USCIS Notice.
Please see our Blog Post on the matter:
Based on the common case statuses, you can see a pattern or progression of a case as it processes through the USCIS System and many officers to either an approval or interview.
More explanation on the USCIS Case Status can be found here: /immigration/common-uscis-case-statuses-a-helpful-explanation/
Disclaimer: This Blog is made available by the lawyer or law firm publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Blog/Web Site publisher. The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.
The post USCIS Case Processing: Common Statuses and Questions appeared first on Fickey Martinez Law Firm.
(910) 526-0066
13252 Garden Grove Blvd.
Suite 204-106
Garden Grove, CA 92843
DISCLAIMER – The information does not constitute legal advice and please be aware that neither this website nor the use of information from this website creates an attorney-client relationship.
© 2024 Fickey Martinez Law Firm. All Rights Reserved.
This website has been built to be accessible for all users. If you experience any difficulty in accessing this website, please contact us for assistance.