A decoding method is carried out in a receiver configured to accept format information relating to sequences of input data, to use format information in the decoding of each input sequence, and to issue an acknowledgement signal in the event that an input sequence is successfully decoded. The method involves receiving a format message pertaining to a new input sequence, searching a candidate set of format indices an index best satisfying a criterion for matching to the format message, and selecting the index giving the best match. Before searching, the receiver reads the acknowledgement signals issued in response to the decoding or attempted decoding of recent input sequences. If the acknowledgement signals satisfy an appropriate condition, the search is limited to fewer than all the indices in the candidate set. The format information that corresponds to the selected index is used in decoding the new input sequence.