How to use I-GUIDE

Signing in takes seconds

All you need to register is an email and a password: no name, no phone number. Signing in with Apple even lets you hide your email. You can also tap “Continue without an account”: statistics, guides and specialists are open to everyone.

Email, Apple or Google

With email, you need a password of at least 8 characters and a 4-digit code from the message you receive. With Apple or Google, the app gets the email and name from your account. In the Apple window, you can change the name and hide the email: “Hide My Email”.

Add your first case

Until you add a case, the Tracker shows what the app can do. Tap “+ ADD CASE”. Without an account, the app asks you to sign in first.

Where to find the number

Receipt Number: 3 letters and 10 digits, shown on USCIS notices. A-number: 8 or 9 digits. The ⓘ icon shows where to look for them on your documents.

Enter the number

The app figures out on its own whether it’s a USCIS case or a court case. For a court case, you also need to select a nationality. Then tap “ADD”.

Your case is on the list

A USCIS case opens right away: form, status, time elapsed and stage.

All your cases in one list

USCIS and court cases sit side by side. Tap a card to open the case. Refresh, filter and sort are at the top of the screen.

What each field on the card means

Sorting

The icon at the top opens sorting. Next to it is the refresh icon: it checks all your cases at once.

How to sort

By date added, date modified, case number or form type, in either direction. The last option on the list is “Manual”.

Your own order

Press and hold a card, then drag it where you want it. Sorting switches to “Manual” on its own.

Delete a case

Swipe a card left and a “Delete” button appears. On the case screen, use the trash icon.

The “Delete” button

Tap it, or swipe the card all the way.

Confirm the deletion

The app asks again: the form can’t be restored. Your actual case at USCIS or in court doesn’t change in any way.

Filter: court

The switch at the top leaves only court cases. A colored border means the case has an outcome, and an orange clock means the EAD Clock is stopped.

Filter: USCIS

Or only USCIS cases. “All” brings back the full list. Tap a card to open the case.

Update the status

Tap the refresh icon in the case, or pull down the list in the Tracker. With Premium, USCIS statuses update on their own, and you get a push notification and an email when something changes.

History and dates

Further down the screen: the full status text, when it changed, and every status change on a timeline.

What each field on the card means

Share

Your case becomes an image. Part of the number is hidden, and there’s no name on it.

Wait time forecast

Roughly how much longer you’ll wait for a USCIS decision. Until the time is calculated, the box shows “?”. Tap “Calculate”.

Form and office

Choose the form category and the office or service center. You can tell the center from the first three letters of your case number.

Before the 50% mark

The bar fills up to where your case is now: 2.6 months since filing. The 5.7-month mark is still far off: that’s how long it takes USCIS to decide half of these applications.

What the box shows

Roughly how much longer you’ll wait. The first number: a 50% chance of a decision within 3 months. The second, in orange: an 80% chance within 12.5 months.

Past the halfway mark

The case has been pending for 9.7 months, so the 50% mark is passed and gone. Next come 80 and 93%, and the box shows 5.5 to 20 months.

The bar turns orange

Your case has been pending longer than it takes to decide 80% of applications. One mark is left, 93%: at that chance, you have no more than 8 months to go.

Outside normal processing time

The bar turns red and a “Report USCIS” button appears: it opens a form on the USCIS website. This doesn’t guarantee a faster decision, but USCIS has to respond.

More details

The “More details” button explains each mark. With Premium, you can turn on a notification for when you can reach out to USCIS.

Court case

Next hearing, judge and court address. Tap the hearing to add it to your calendar, or the address to open Maps.

Case history

What changed in the case and when: hearing date and type, format, judge.

Guides

How-tos, answers to common questions and news, with search. Some articles include videos and files.

Immigrant’s Path

A game based on the guides: from your first day in the U.S. to the citizenship oath. Works offline.

Samples and blank forms

The “Files” tab: sample forms and blank forms for court. Tap the preview with the arrow. You need to sign in to download, and files with a lock open with Premium.

My Documents

Your I-94, passport and work permit, always at hand. Open your profile and tap “My Documents”.

Your files stay with you

Documents are stored only on your device and aren’t uploaded to a server. Add a photo from your camera or gallery, or a PDF.

Name and folder

Name the document and sort it into folders. PDF, JPG, JPEG, PNG and HEIC all work.