N400 is stuck in background checks. Is there anything I can do except waiting?

[jljames 0]

My FO is San Jose, CA. I submitted my application on 05/29/2023 and did the biometrics collections on 06/23/2023. The status has been "Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS" since then. About two weeks ago, the ETA on USCIS became "Your case is taking longer than expected to process. You will be notified if you need to take any action." I sent an email to the Senator and got a reply from USCIS saying my case is still pending on background checks. I found some similar posts from several years ago in this forum where people mentioned something like Infopass etc. From what I saw online, it looks like the processing time has been much shorter in the recent two years and people usually finish it within 6 months. Is there anyone else in the same situation and anything I can do except waiting?

[OldUser 6,920]

I wouldn't worry just yet.

According to processing times, 80% of cases take 7 months in San Jose FO - https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/

 

So you're only delayed by few weeks so far, as 7 months would have been the end of December 2023.

 

It may take few more months.

 

After a year of waiting you can probably file WoM.

[futurecoloradogrl 82]

I submitted in early Feb 2023, in-person biometrics in April, case status changed to 'interview scheduled' late November, and interviewed January 3rd. I was getting the same message in the couple of weeks before the status changed to scheduled. Now sat in limbo again after interview, despite getting recommended for approval from the officer and having what should be a very straightforward case (no name changes, taxes owed, criminal history, etc). Seems to be down to sheer luck.

Edited January 13 by futurecoloradogrl

[OldUser 6,920]

14 minutes ago, futurecoloradogrl said:

I submitted in early Feb 2023, in-person biometrics in April, case status changed to 'interview scheduled' late November, and interviewed January 3rd. I was getting the same message in the couple of weeks before the status changed to scheduled. Now sat in limbo again after interview, despite getting recommended for approval from the officer and having what should be a very straightforward case (no name changes, taxes owed, criminal history, etc). Seems to be down to sheer luck.

Same field office?

With USCIS nothing matters - online status, verbal approvals are unreliable. Only when you get the immigration benefit there's some certainty.

[austinlele 0]

On 1/13/2024 at 2:40 PM, jljames said:

My FO is San Jose, CA. I submitted my application on 05/29/2023 and did the biometrics collections on 06/23/2023. The status has been "Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS" since then. About two weeks ago, the ETA on USCIS became "Your case is taking longer than expected to process. You will be notified if you need to take any action." I sent an email to the Senator and got a reply from USCIS saying my case is still pending on background checks. I found some similar posts from several years ago in this forum where people mentioned something like Infopass etc. From what I saw online, it looks like the processing time has been much shorter in the recent two years and people usually finish it within 6 months. Is there anyone else in the same situation and anything I can do except waiting?

How is your case going? I took fingerprints on November 16 last month, and the case status changed to CASE IS BEING ACTILVELY REVIEWED BY USCIS, and the time was shortened to 4 months. However, since last Monday, the estimated time has not been displayed. I called the immigration office and they said the case is in processing, and the time has become 7.5 months. Do you think my case is stuck in the background check? Is the situation similar to what you encountered before?

[OldUser 6,920]

1 hour ago, austinlele said:

How is your case going? I took fingerprints on November 16 last month, and the case status changed to CASE IS BEING ACTILVELY REVIEWED BY USCIS, and the time was shortened to 4 months. However, since last Monday, the estimated time has not been displayed. I called the immigration office and they said the case is in processing, and the time has become 7.5 months. Do you think my case is stuck in the background check? Is the situation similar to what you encountered before?

Do not worry about estimated times. MyProgress tab is source of useless, inaccurate information. Many people saw it disappear. It may reappear in the future. There's often maintenance related to it or outages.

 

Your case is processing normal.

You should not expect rapid updates within 1 month of submitting biometrics. The next update will likely be either be RFE or interview, and it's likely going to be at least 3 months away from now, maybe 6-9 months. There will be nothing in between and you'll see estimates jumping from few days to several months for no reason. 

[Ontarkie 14,286]

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