What is USCIS’s SAVE CaseCheck?

As we described in an earlier post here, the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) – the agency responsible for issuing Social Security numbers – has struggled to consistently grant Social Security to some nonimmigrants who clearly qualify for them, including the spouses of those who hold an E or L visa. Fortunately, the SSA has improved its processing of Social Security numbers for these applicants, resulting in fewer erroneous denials or rejections.

Now, however, applicants for Social Security numbers are reporting that their applications are being delayed because of an additional verification process that involves the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS is the agency that oversees both U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Fortunately USCIS has introduced a resource, called SAVE CaseCheck, that provides some degree of transparency to the process. In this post, we take a look at SAVE CaseCheck, including what it is and in what circumstances it might be helpful.

To understand why the SAVE CaseCheck website is helpful it’s helpful to consider an example.

Tomas is a national of Argentina. He entered the U.S. as a visitor in B-2 status. He recently applied – and was approved – to change his status to that of an E-2 dependent spouse, since his wife runs a successful business on her E-2 visa. Tomas now wants to start working, which he is permitted to do as an E-2 dependent spouse. As a result, he has applied for a Social Security number through SSA, and he applied for a driver’s license with his local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) so that he can drive himself to work (we call the Social Security number, driver’s license, and other services Tomas can apply for “benefits”).

Unfortunately, when he arrived at the local SSA office, he was told that they do not have a record of his status changing to that of an E-2 spouse. The DMV gave Tomas a similar response, saying that they needed confirmation from USCIS that he is qualified to receive the benefit he is applying for. To this end, both agencies – the SSA a federal agency and the DMV a state agency – have asked USCIS for confirmation that Tomas is in a legal immigration status in the U.S. that permits him to receive the benefit he is seeking (a Social Security number and a driver’s license). They told Tomas that they have done so by filing an inquiry with USCIS’s SAVE Program.

Tomas now wants to know whether the agencies did, in fact, ask USCIS for this information, and whether USCIS has responded to them.

This is where SAVE CaseCheck comes in.

SAVE CaseCheck is a website operated by USCIS that allows individuals to check on the status of a SAVE request to confirm whether a request has been made, and whether USCIS has responded to it. The website provides inquiries made to the SAVE Program by a federal, state, or local government agency.

For example, through SAVE CaseCheck, Tomas would be able to confirm that the SSA and the state DMV have made SAVE requests. He would also be able to see when a response has been sent back to either the SSA or the DMV, so that he can then return to that office and complete the application process.

SAVE CaseCheck can be accessed here. The individual can access the system by entering their date of birth and a verification number as provided by one of the following documents:

• Certificate of Citizenship
• Certificate of Naturalization
• I-20 Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status
• I-94 Arrival/Departure Record
• I-551 Permanent Resident Card
• I-765 Employment Authorization Card
• The case verification number that was provided by the specific agency you visited

Please note that the individual should use the same information that they gave to the agency they requested the benefit from.

USCIS’s SAVE CaseCheck website can be a helpful resource to add transparency to the process of applying for a government benefit, and can save time by letting the applicant know when they can return to the agency to complete the application process for the specific benefit they are seeking.

In some cases, delays can persist. For additional information on how to navigate these delays, please see our earlier post here, or contact us to discuss your specific circumstances.