What does it mean when USCIS says your case is being held for review?

The AAO reports its processing times by form type, displaying the total number of completions for the quarter and the percentage completed within 180 days, which is our goal.

The administrative appeals process has two stages: initial field review and AAO appellate review.

Initial field review: The office that issued the unfavorable decision has 45 days to evaluate the appeal and determine whether to take favorable action on the appeal. If that office does not take favorable action, it will forward the appeal to the AAO and send the appellant a Notice of Transfer to the AAO.

AAO appellate review: The AAO strives to complete its appellate review within 180 days from the time it receives a complete case record after the initial field review. Some cases may take longer than 180 days due to factors beyond the AAO’s control. For example, additional documentation may be needed to complete the record, or the case may be more complex and require additional review.

The following chart shows the percentage of cases the AAO completed within 180 days, by case category, during the most recent quarter of the fiscal year. These data include all AAO dispositions for the listed form types. If a case category is not listed, the AAO issued no appeal decisions for that category in the most recent quarter.

Timeliness of Fiscal Year 2022 Fourth Quarter Completions (July - September 2022)
Form TypeCase TypeCompleted 0-180 DaysQuarterly Completions
Cumulative total of all completions   64.85% 791
I-129F Petition for Fiancée 100% 18
I-129H1B Nonimmigrant Specialty Occupation Worker 94.87% 39
I-129H3 Nonimmigrant Trainee or Special Education Exchange 100% 2
I-129L Nonimmigrant Intracompany Transferee 59.46% 37
I-129O Nonimmigrant Extraordinary Ability Worker 28.57% 7
I-129P Athletes, Artists and Entertainers 100% 5
I-129Q Nonimmigrant International Cultural Exchange 0% 1
I-129R Nonimmigrant Religious Worker 100% 11
I-131 Application for Travel Document 100% 16
I-140A Alien with Extraordinary Ability 50.91% 55
I-140C Multinational Manager or Executive 62.50% 16
I-140D Advanced Degree Professional 48.39% 31
I-140E Professional Worker 55.26% 38
I-140F Skilled Worker 37.14% 35
I-140G Other Worker 60.71% 28
I-140I National Interest Waiver 85% 60
I-212 Application to Reapply for Admission 68.42% 38
I-352 Bond Breach 100% 8
I-360C Special Immigrant Juvenile 4.82% 83
I-360D Petition for Religious Worker 100% 2
I-360 VAWA Violence Against Women Act Petition 45.61% 57
I-485 SEC 13 Cuban Adjustment Act 100% 1
I-485U Nonimmigrant Crime Victim 100% 17
I-526 Alien Entrepreneur 100% 4
I-601 Application for Waiver of Inadmissibility 83.49% 109
I-612 Application of 212(e) Waiver 100% 1
I-821 Temporary Protected Status 77.78% 18
I-914 Application for T Nonimmigrant Status 100% 5
I-918 Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status 92.31% 26
N-565 Replacement Naturalization/Citizenship Document 100% 3
N-600 Certificate of Citizenship 95% 20

Hi did anyone get the “Your case is being held for review” notice after AOS interview?

Our Interview went well, the officer said he couldnt approve on the spot because he just needed to scan the medical and photo album we provided and that we should see a response online by the end of the day or the next day. Its now been 2 days and theres still no update, online it still shows “Interview was scheduled” as the most recent status. Has anyone been through this? if so, how long was the wait before an uodate was posted? Thanks!

National Benefits Center: I-485

Timeline Map

Request for Evidence(RFE) from USCIS

Biometrics, i.e. fingerprint and photo

Decision (Approval or Denial)

Find out what comes after "Interview Was Scheduled" in Lawfully's USCIS Case Status Message Explorer, based on real statistical data.

What does it mean when USCIS says your case is being held for review?

What does it mean when your case is under review USCIS?

It simply means that the case manager requested additional information from your employer, USCIS received evidence in response to the query, and the case manager is currently reviewing the new information.

How long does it take USCIS to review a case?

AAO appellate review: The AAO strives to complete its appellate review within 180 days from the time it receives a complete case record after the initial field review. Some cases may take longer than 180 days due to factors beyond the AAO's control.

What happens after case is being actively reviewed by USCIS?

In this way, you can track your USCIS case status and receive electronic notifications. In contrast, your case status may say that your application or petition is being actively reviewed, where usually no further action will be required by you, and your case is being processed in the order it was received.