Request for Additional Evidence Was Sent

What this status means

USCIS shows two messages for the same kind of notice, Form I-797E, the notice type USCIS uses to request evidence:

According to the USCIS Policy Manual, every RFE has to state:

• the eligibility requirement that has not been met;
• whether the evidence asked for is initial or additional;
• examples of evidence that could answer it;
• the deadline to respond.

Three points about it:

• It is not a denial and not an approval. USCIS can deny a case without sending an RFE at all, so an RFE is a chance to complete the record.
• The evidence has to show you were eligible when you filed, not only today.
• USCIS may also ask, at any time, to see the original of a document you sent as a copy. It returns originals it asked for once the case is decided.

Your deadline

The deadline is the date on your notice. The officer chooses it based on what is being asked, up to the longest time the rules allow:

How USCIS counts it, per the Policy Manual:

• No extensions. Regulations do not let officers give more time on an RFE.
• The clock starts when USCIS serves it. If the RFE is mailed, service is complete the day USCIS mails it, which is why 3 days are added. If USCIS serves it electronically in your online account, service is complete the day it is uploaded, and the extra 3 days do not apply.
• Received, not sent. The deadline is for USCIS to receive your response, not for you to send it.
• Online responses count as received the day you submit them, even on a weekend or a federal holiday.
• Mailed responses: if the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, a response that arrives the next business day is on time.

How to respond

Online

If you filed online, USCIS notifies you by text message or email when there is an RFE. Sign in to your USCIS online account and open the “Documents or Notices” tab to read the notice and respond. The USCIS upload rules:

• each file 12 MB or less;
• generally PDF, JPG or JPEG (some forms also take TIF or TIFF);
• no encrypted or password-protected files;
• for a document in another language, upload the original, a certified English translation and the translator’s certificate;
• scans or photos must be clear and readable.

USCIS lists RFE responses among the benefits of filing online. For a paper filing linked to your account, it lists status, case history, address changes and rescheduling biometrics, not RFE responses. If you filed on paper, follow the mailing instructions on the notice.

By mail

Send the response to the address on the RFE, with the RFE notice itself. Keep a full copy of what you send.

The three ways to answer

The Policy Manual gives three options, all within the deadline:

1. A complete response, with everything asked for. USCIS asks for it all in one submission.
2. A partial response. USCIS treats it as a request for a decision on the record as it stands. It does not send a second RFE only because the answer was incomplete.
3. Withdrawing the application or petition.

If no response arrives in time, USCIS may deny the case as abandoned, on the record, or both. A denial for abandonment cannot be appealed, but you can file a motion to reopen on Form I-290B. An RFE is a good moment to have an immigration attorney or accredited representative look at the request, especially when it is about eligibility rather than a missing document.

What happens after you respond

Once USCIS has your response, the status usually changes to “Response To USCIS’ Request For Evidence Was Received”: USCIS has it and will review what you sent before it goes on with the case. Both messages are in the evidence stage of the status index.

From there, the case can move to a decision, to an interview, or to another notice. USCIS publishes no figure for the time from an RFE response to a decision. Its data gives the median from filing to decision for the whole form, which already includes cases that had an RFE:

Period: April to June 2026, USCIS quarterly report. Details by form: I-485 processing time, N-400 processing time, I-765 processing time and I-130 processing time.

An RFE versus a NOID

A NOID is more serious: it says USCIS plans to deny unless your response changes that. USCIS also uses an RFE, a NOID, a Notice of Intent to Revoke or Rescind (NOIR) or a Notice of Intent to Terminate (NOIT) to tell you about derogatory information it plans to use, so you can answer it.

If you did not get the RFE

For a mailed RFE, the deadline counts from the day USCIS mailed it, not the day it reached you. Every day the letter is lost comes out of your time to answer.

1. Look in your online account first. USCIS says an online account gives access to most notices it sends on online filings, and you can answer from the same place.
2. Do not wait for a tracking number. USCIS notices cannot be tracked through USPS or UPS.
3. Ask for a copy once 14 days have passed since the date Case Status Online gives for the notice. Use e-Request, in the category for a notice not received by mail, or call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 (weekdays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern), which lists a missing RFE among the requests it handles.
4. Fix the address if that was the problem. USCIS needs your new address within 10 days of a move (change of address). Telling only the Post Office does not reach USCIS.

The status messages that can come next

Each is explained in the status messages index:

• Response To USCIS’ Request For Evidence Was Received
• Case Is Being Actively Reviewed By USCIS
• Case Is Ready To Be Scheduled For An Interview
• Notice Explaining USCIS Actions Was Mailed
• Case Was Approved
• Case Was Denied

The YourCaseStatus app (coming soon) will alert you when your status changes.