N-600 Final-Stage Wait Falls 34 Days While RFE Cases Run Ahead of the Queue
This week's 55-day median is a statistically low outlier, while an unusual RFE inversion saw evidence-request cases clear nearly three times faster than plain-processing ones. Both signals reflect a single noisy week, not a shift in trend.
The N-600 Certificate of Citizenship final-stage wait (the time from a case's last reported status to approval) fell to 55 days this week, down 34 days from 90 days the prior week. An `outlier_week_low` flag fired at z = -2.01 against the prior 4-week trailing window, marking this as the sharpest single-week decline in the 12-week series. At the same time, cases that received an RFE (Request for Evidence) posted a median of just 26 days, compared with 71 days for plain-processing cases, a 2.73x inversion of the usual pattern. The 12-week trailing average of 64 days remains the most stable reference for applicants tracking their wait.
- The N-600 final-stage wait fell 34 days week over week, from 90 days to 55 days, triggering an outlier_week_low flag at z = -2.01 against the prior 4-week trailing mean.
- Cases that received an RFE (Request for Evidence) cleared in 26 days this week, while plain-processing cases took 71 days, a 2.73x inversion of the typical pattern.
- The 8-week regression slope is -0.1 days per week with R² = 0.00, meaning the series has no reliable directional signal and the 64-day trailing average is the steadiest reference.
- Cases filed in April 2026 are 4.9% approved at 22 weeks of age, consistent with a form that historically takes 14 to 18 months end to end.
- The total active backlog across all filing-month groups grew by 1,803 cases (+1.9%) over the past 28 days to approximately 99,119.
Two signals, pulling in opposite directions
The N-600 final-stage wait, measured as days from a case's last reported status to approval, fell to 55 days this week from 90 days the week before, a 34-day decline. An `outlier_week_low` anomaly flag fired at z = -2.01, computed against the prior 4-week trailing mean. That reading places this week as the sharpest single-week move in the 12-week window. Even so, 55 days is still 13 days above the same week last year (42 days, based on a sample of 22 cases), and the 8-week regression slope sits at -0.1 days per week with R² = 0.00, meaning the longer series shows no directional signal at all.
A big drop, but the trend is still flat
The second signal runs in a different direction. Cases that received a Request for Evidence (RFE) and submitted a response posted a median final-stage wait of just 26 days this week, while cases that moved through plain processing without an RFE sat at 71 days. That 2.73x ratio is the inverse of the usual pattern, where RFE-touched cases typically take longer. An `rfe_fast` flag fired to mark this inversion. One likely explanation is that a batch of RFE responses filed around the same time cleared together this week, compressing the group's median. A single week is not sufficient to conclude that USCIS changed how it handles RFE responses for N-600.
Twelve weeks of noise, one flat line
Over the past 12 weeks, N-600 final-stage medians have ranged from 33 days (week of Jun 29) to 90 days (week of Aug 24), a 57-day spread. The series has moved 20 days or more between consecutive weeks on multiple occasions: the Jun 22 to Jun 29 pair went from 41 to 33 days, the Jul 6 to Jul 13 pair from 53 to 68 days, and last week's 90-day reading fell back to 55 this week. Weekly sample sizes ranged from 138 to 348 cases, and thinner weeks produce noisier readings. The 8-week slope of -0.1 days per week with an R² of 0.00 confirms that no reliable trend underlies the movement. The 12-week trailing average of 64 days is the steadiest summary figure for this form right now.
For this form right now, the absence of any trend is itself the signal worth tracking.
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