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Short answer: if your case has passed the normal processing time for your form and office, you can ask USCIS about it — through a service request, your local congressional office, or the CIS Ombudsman. This drafts that request in plain, polite language, and tells you which route fits your situation and what USCIS will want to see.
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Check the posted time first. Most cases that feel slow are still inside the normal window. Look up your form and office at USCIS Processing Times, and submit a service request through your USCIS online account. Both are free.
Once your case is outside the posted processing time for your form and the office handling it. Check the current time at the official processing times page first, because a case that feels slow is often still inside the normal window.
It is the formal way to ask USCIS to look at a case that is outside normal processing time. You can submit one through your USCIS online account or by calling the contact centre. It is free, and it is normally the first step before anything else.
It is a legitimate route and it is free. Every congressional office has caseworkers who handle federal agency inquiries for constituents, and they can often get a status answer faster than a service request. It is usually worth trying a service request first.
Asking about a case that is genuinely outside normal processing time is a normal, expected thing to do and does not count against you. What does waste time is repeated inquiries on a case that is still inside the posted window.
Not for a simple status request. It is worth talking to an attorney if the delay involves a Request for Evidence you are unsure how to answer, a prior denial, anything in your record that complicates the case, or a deadline you are at risk of missing.
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USCIS Case Inquiry Letter Writer · Rocket Launch Media. Not legal advice. Not affiliated with or endorsed by USCIS. The draft is a starting point for your own review.