Case Was Received
What "Case Was Received" means on your USCIS case, and what to do next.
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What does “Case Was Received” mean?
USCIS has accepted your application or petition and created a case in its system. A receipt notice (Form I-797C) with your receipt number follows. This is the normal first milestone and does not indicate anything about your case beyond acceptance.
What we see in real cases
From 5,000+ de-identified cases people checked with CaseStatusAPI that show code IAF. Updated daily.
- Cases
- 5,000+
- Last seen
- Oct 2026
- Usually after filing
- Same day
Forms it appears on
These are cases people checked here, not every USCIS case, so they lean toward online filings and people watching their case closely. Your own case can move faster or slower.
What should you do?
Save your receipt number, create or check your myUSCIS account, and confirm the form type and filing date match your notice. From here the next visible step is usually biometrics or active review.
Looking for other statuses? Browse the full USCIS case status & code index.
See your own case, explained.
See every step USCIS has recorded for your case, in plain English: your timeline, silent updates, and what usually comes next for cases like yours.
Check my case freeWe are immigration applicants and technologists who built CaseStatusAPI to help others navigate the USCIS process with transparency. Our guides are informed by firsthand experience, community feedback, and deep analysis of USCIS internal API data.
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