What every USCIS case status means

USCIS describes every case with a fixed phrase, the status, plus a dated description. USCIS uses dozens of different titles, but a handful of them appear on the vast majority of cases. This guide groups them by stage: what each one means, whether you need to do something, and what usually comes next.

How to read a status

Every check shows you three things:

• The status title, for example Case Was Received. This is the part that changes when something happens.
• The description, which opens with a date ("As of…" or "On…") and your receipt number. The instructions live here: if it says a notice was sent and you do not get it by a certain date, the description itself tells you to request a copy through an e-Request.
• The history, the list of earlier sentences ("We received your Form…", "We sent you a request for evidence…"). It lets you rebuild the path that led to the current status.

The date in the description is the date of the last change, not the date you checked. If the title stays the same and only the date moves, USCIS refreshed the text without any real news.

The 12 most common statuses

These twelve titles are the ones you will see most often:

Now, stage by stage.

1. Received

Case Was Received and A Receipt Notice Was Sent is the first status on almost every form: USCIS accepted your application, assigned a receipt number and mailed you the Notice of Action (Form I-797C). Variants that mean the same thing:

• Case Was Received: the same, with a shorter text.
• Fees Were Waived: your case was received and your fee waiver request was accepted.
• Case Was Received Receipt Notice Not Sent: the case is in, but the notice has not gone out yet. It shows up mostly on I-130 petitions.
• Corrected Receipt Notice Issued: USCIS fixed something on the notice (a name, a date) and sent a new one.

What to do: check that your name, date of birth and form type are correct on the notice, and keep it. If something is wrong, the description tells you how to request a correction.

How long it lasts: it depends on the form. A work permit (I-765) can go from received to approved within weeks or take many months depending on the category; an adjustment of status (I-485) usually moves to "fingerprints taken" within weeks or a few months, and then the long wait begins; and a family petition (I-130) can sit in received for a year or more before any change. A case that stays "received" for months is not a sign of trouble. More in Case Was Received: what happens next.

2. Processing, nothing needed from you

Three titles say essentially the same thing: your case is in the queue and USCIS needs nothing from you right now.

• USCIS Is currently Processing the Case. The most common status of all.
• Case Is Still Being Processed By USCIS.
• Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS. It sounds like a decision is imminent, but the description says the same as the other two: "nothing is outstanding at this time".

On the I-589 (asylum) the equivalent is Application Is Pending.

What comes next depends on the form. After "processing", the next change on an I-765 is usually the approval, though the wait in this status can be weeks or many months; an I-485 usually moves to an interview notice, a request for evidence or an approval, often months later; an I-130 usually moves to approved soon after; and an N-400 usually moves to an interview notice months later. More in USCIS Is Currently Processing the Case: is anything wrong?.

3. Biometrics

• Biometrics Appointment Was Scheduled: USCIS booked you at an Application Support Center (ASC) for fingerprints, photo and signature. The date, time and place are on the mailed notice; if it does not arrive by the date in the description, request a copy through an e-Request.
• Case Was Updated To Show Fingerprints Were Taken: your fingerprints were applied to the case and USCIS can continue its background checks. It does not mean a decision is near. It is the status people wait in the longest on an I-485, often for many months or more than a year.
• Biometrics Appointment Must Be Rescheduled: you missed the appointment and must reschedule it following your notice. On an asylum case it also stops your 180-day clock.

After fingerprints, the most frequent next step on an I-485 is a request for evidence (within the following weeks), and later on card production or a notice that the next step is the interview. Full guide: The biometrics appointment.

4. Requests for evidence and notices

This is where you have to act, and there is a deadline.

• Request for Initial Evidence Was Sent and Request for Additional Evidence Was Sent: USCIS asked you for documents. The description is explicit: no action will be taken until the evidence arrives or the deadline passes. The exact deadline is only in the mailed letter. Guide: Request for Evidence (RFE).
• Response To USCIS' Request For Evidence Was Received: your response arrived and USCIS picked the case back up. On an I-485 the most common next step is a refresh to "processing" and, later, the interview or the card.
• Intent to Revoke Notice Was Issued and Intent to Deny: USCIS is telling you it plans to revoke an approval or deny the application, and gives you a deadline to respond. The notice is in your USCIS online account. Guide: Intent to Revoke and Revocation Notice.
• Correspondence Was Received And USCIS Is Reviewing It: they received a letter from you (or your representative) and are reviewing it. Nothing more is needed for now.
• Notice Was Returned To USCIS Because The Post Office Could Not Deliver It: a notice bounced. Check your address at uscis.gov/addresschange and request a copy of the notice.
• Cancellation Notice for Request for Additional Evidence: USCIS cancelled a request it no longer needs.

5. Interview

• Interview Was Scheduled: USCIS scheduled your interview and will mail the notice with the date, time, location and document list. Start gathering originals and copies.
• Next Step Is an Interview and Case is Ready to Be Scheduled for An Interview: your case is waiting for an interview slot. On asylum (I-589) it is the most common status of all and can last years, alternating with "Application Is Pending". Guide: Asylum (I-589) statuses.
• Interview Was Completed And My Case Must Be Reviewed: the interview is over and the final review is pending. There is no decision yet.
• Interview Cancelled, Interview Was Rescheduled, Interview Must Be Rescheduled: the appointment was cancelled or moved. If USCIS did it, it does not count against you; if you missed it, you must ask for a new date (and on asylum, it stops the clock).
• Case Was Updated To Show That No One Appeared for In-Person Processing: USCIS recorded that nobody showed up. Act fast: it can be treated as abandoning the application.

On an I-485, after "Interview Was Scheduled" the most common path is a refresh to "processing" and then the approval, often one to three months after the appointment.

6. Approval and the card

The approval and the card are different statuses, and they arrive in this order:

1. Case Was Approved, Case Approved or Approval Case Decision Rendered: USCIS approved the application and is sending the approval notice. The notice is not the card and does not work for Form I-9.
2. New Card Is Being Produced or Card Was Produced: the card has been printed. The description includes the USPS tracking number.
3. Card Was Picked Up By The United States Postal Service or Card Was Mailed To Me: the card is on its way.
4. Card Was Delivered To Me By The Post Office: USPS delivered it to the address on file.

Each step of this chain usually takes days, sometimes weeks. If it says "delivered" and you do not have the card, the guide Card Was Produced, Mailed, Delivered explains what to do and what Card Was Returned To USCIS and Card Was Destroyed mean.

Other happy endings by form: Certificate Of Naturalization Was Issued and Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed (N-400), Reentry Permit Was Produced and Advance Parole Document Was Produced (I-131), and Case Was Sent To The Department of State on an approved I-130 petition heading to consular processing: for USCIS that case is finished, and the next step belongs to the National Visa Center.

7. Denials, closures and rejections

• Case Was Denied: USCIS denied the application. The denial letter explains why, whether you can file a motion or an appeal, and the deadline, which usually runs from the date on the letter. A denied I-765 does not authorize you to work.
• Decision Was Mailed and Decision Was Picked Up: on asylum, a decision was made, but the online status does not say which. Only the letter does.
• Revocation Notice Was Issued and Revocation Notice Was Sent: an earlier approval was revoked. Since 2025 it has become more frequent on work permits tied to programs that ended.
• I-765 Automatically Revoked: the work permit depended on another form that has now been decided, so it was cancelled on its own.
• Application Was Closed: on asylum, USCIS closed the application and forwarded it to the immigration court. Your case continues, now before a judge: check it with your A-Number in the immigration court lookup.
• Case Administratively Closed: USCIS stopped processing the case without approving or denying it. The letter says why and how to reopen it; when it is reopened, the status moves to Case Was Reopened.
• Case Was Rejected Because It Was Improperly Filed and Case Rejected Because I Sent An Incorrect Fee: the packet was returned unprocessed (signature, form version, fee). The filing date is not preserved: fix it and resubmit.
• TPS Country Designation Terminated by FRN: your country's TPS designation ended through a Federal Register notice. It is not a decision on your individual case; the notice lists the wind-down dates.
• Case Was Terminated, Termination Notice Issued: USCIS ended the benefit or the application. Read the letter.
• Withdrawal Acknowledgement Notice Was Sent: USCIS accepted your withdrawal.
• Case Was Reopened: a closed or denied case was reopened, usually after a motion.

8. Other statuses you will see now and then

• Case Was Transferred And A New Office Has Jurisdiction: USCIS moved your case to another office to balance workloads. It is not a decision; the processing times are now the new office's. You can find out which one in Find your USCIS office.
• Status Is Not Available Online: USCIS is not showing this case's status. It can be temporary; on asylum it often precedes the closure and transfer to court.
• Expedite Request Approved and Expedite Request Denied: the answer to your request for faster processing. A denial does not affect your case, which stays in the regular queue.
• Name Was Updated, Date of Birth Was Updated: a detail in your record was corrected.
• Duplicate Notice Was Mailed, New Notice Was Issued: a copy or a new notice went out. Check your online account or the mail.
• Fee Refund Was Mailed, Issue with Payment: a fee problem or refund. "Issue with Payment" usually ends in a rejection unless it is fixed.

Same status, different form

A status does not mean the same thing on every form. "USCIS Is currently Processing the Case" is usually the doorstep of the approval on an I-130 or an I-765, but on an I-485 it usually announces an interview or a request for evidence months later. "Case Was Received" can last weeks on a work permit and more than a year on a family petition. So when you read your status, always look at the form and its official processing time.

Common questions

How often does the status change?

Whenever USCIS records an event: receipt, appointment, request, decision, card. Between events, weeks or months can pass with no change. A case can skip steps (not every form requires biometrics or an interview).

Is the status date the date they decided?

It is the date USCIS recorded that status. Mailed notices can arrive one or two weeks later, and sometimes the online status changes before the letter shows up.

What if the status has not changed in months?

Compare your receipt date with the processing time for your form and office. If your case is already outside that time, file an e-Request. If not, waiting is normal.

How do I find out the moment it changes?

By checking your case often, or with alerts. MigraConnect+ notifies your phone when the status changes, before the letter arrives, and uses AI to show the steps that most often follow your status in similar cases. Those are probabilities, never a guarantee.

Need additional help? Contact USCIS directly at 1-800-375-5283.