Information overload: A ride on the USCIS Processing Time Roller Coaster

AILA members, their clients, and others know that the U.S. Immigration system is similar to an amusement-park ride – full of thrills, terrors, and terrifying twists and turn. The U.S. is one ride that has many of these twists and turns, loops and unknown drops. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) Processing Times Roller Coaster. Hop on the roller coaster, lower the bar and tighten it up. Keep your arms and legs in the car. Let’s go!

Let me share some background information about the USCIS Processing Times Roller Coaster before we start our ascent. USCIS has changed the way it communicates information about its processing times. It also altered the method by which it calculates the information and how customers can track their progress. USCIS released a press release in May 2022 announcing changes to the processing times page. The agency claimed to have improved transparency and simplified how information was viewed. Customers can check the processing time for 80% of similar cases based on form type, category and USCIS service center. USCIS also offers a number of additional pages that contain processing times information, including the historic processing times page which shows the median processing time by form type (50th percentile), and the myProgress page for applicants, who, according to USCIS, receive a “personalized processing time” based on “similar cases types”.

Transparency and accessibility continue to be important for those who have long-pending cases, even as USCIS works to reduce the crisis-level delays. Customers, including immigration lawyers, face a challenge in estimating how long it will take the agency to process a petition or application and when they can follow up if the case falls outside the posted processing time. Although the agency is doing its best to provide additional information, the multiple presentations and calculations can be confusing. The follow-up process can also be frustrating.

Let’s look at an example as we reach the top of the lift-hill. This is a category c (9 application for work authorization. The applicant has a pending status adjustment at the Vermont Service Center. The processing times page indicates that, when we select the correct application type, category and service center, 80% of cases similar to ours have been completed within 11.5 months. When our car reaches the top of the page, we scroll to the section “When can i ask about my case?” and enter the date that our car was received, which is October 3, 2022. The agency will not allow inquiries until the case has exceeded the 93% threshold for adjudication. The website says that we can’t make an inquiry until November 21st 2023.

There’s still more to this rollercoaster. Reviewing the website will reveal some additional twists that may cause vertigo in both attorneys and clients. USCIS Historic Processing Times contains median processing time for certain forms. This is the amount of time needed to adjudicate half of all cases. The median processing time of a c(8) EAD appears to be only 5.5 month on that page. This is in stark contrast with the “real-time” processing time page and causes further confusion. The agency’s statistics paint a similar image, using median processing times of the included form types.

The ride ends with a stop at the latest addition to USCIS, the myProgress webpage. This page provides a “personalized” time estimate for certain forms. The page offers personalized processing time estimations, but these cannot be relied on for inquiries after they have passed. Once they have passed without a response, the page will sometimes simply say that the case “takes longer than expected” and to visit the case processing times webpage. If an applicant receives a “personalized time” of three months, for instance, to process their EAD application, inquiries will only be allowed once the case has exceeded the 93rd per centile period. Attorneys do not have the ability to access the myProgress webpage, which can cause confusion and frustration if a client receives a different processing time from the attorney. All of this adds up to a heart-pounding final drop, which splits the car in half before a final turn plunges both attorney and client into darkness.

It is important that we acknowledge, as we debark the ship and reflect on our experiences, the efforts of the agency to provide information about its processing times. AILA is appreciative of the agency’s transparency as it works to reduce its backlog and processing delay. The agency should and can do better at calculating the distribution of processing times, and display it in an organized way. It could also allow for a reasonable follow-up procedure rather than mandating that no contact be made until 93% of the forms have been completed.

AILA sent USCIS feedback on USCIS’s processing time pages last month. The feedback recommended that the agency report processing times at the 25th and 50th percentiles for each form type. It also suggested that the agency allow for follow-up if a case is still pending after the 75th centile time. And, most importantly, it recommended updating the calculations of processing times to take into account current and future cases, rather than only past data. These are realistic and achievable goals that will improve customer service and reduce confusion.

It’s time that USCIS replaces this roller coaster ride with one that is smoother and more straightforward for clients who want to know the status of their cases, as well as for the attorneys representing those clients.