Estimated AAO Case Processing Times as of July 1, 2016

On July 14, 2016, the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) released its updated case processing times report [link]. The processing times are as of July 1, 2016.

The AAO case processing times are for appeals of unfavorable decisions by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) field offices after an “initial field review.” After initially receiving an unfavorable decision, an applicant may ask for the field office to conduct an initial field review. The USCIS advises that the initial field review should be completed within 45 days.

If the field office does not take favorable action on the appeal, it will then send the applicant a Notice of Transfer to the AAO. The following chart will indicate the estimated AAO processing times for handling appeals.

The expected case processing times for the AAO to render a decision is 6 months or less for all forms as of July 1, 2016. This is mostly unchanged from the expected AAO case processing times as of February 1, 2016, save for the I-129F, Petition for Fiancée, and the Form N-600, Certificate of Citizenship, which were both 7 months as of February 1, 2016 [see blog]. The following chart contains the estimated AAO case processing times as of July 1, 2016:

The USCIS explains that the AAO cannot provide case status information on appeals awaiting initial field review by a USCIS field office. However, the USCIS explains that the applicant may contact the USCIS National Customer Service line at (800) 375-5283 (the TTY number is (800) 767-1833) to inquire about a case if the applicant has not received any of the following from the USCIS within 75 days of filing the appeal:

An approval notice;
A request for evidence;
A Notice of Transfer to the AAO; or
Any other correspondence or action from the [USCIS] field office.

Persons filing immigration forms for benefits or immigration relief should always consult with an experienced immigration attorney. An experienced immigration attorney will not only be of assistance in the process of appealing an unfavorable decision by the USCIS, but also in the initial filing of a form in helping the applicant to ensure that he or she is filing for the correct immigration benefits and that the forms are properly filed with all of the requisite evidence.