Green Card, Citizenship, Asylum: US Moves To Make Immigration Filing Online

Under President Donald Trump, the US is moving to make online filing mandatory for a wide range of immigration applications, as the government pushes the system away from paper and towards digital processing.

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued an interim final rule that took effect Tuesday. Under the rule, USCIS can require electronic filing for any immigration form that has already been available for online filing for at least 180 days.

The change does not mean every immigration form will suddenly become online-only. USCIS will designate forms for mandatory online filing and must give applicants at least 60 days' notice before doing so.

The change could cover green card applications and renewals, family-based petitions, citizenship applications, asylum requests, employment authorisation applications and Temporary Protected Status filings.

Applicants will generally use a USCIS online account. They can either complete the form online or upload a PDF of the completed form along with supporting documents and other evidence.

USCIS says the shift will reduce paper use, manual data entry, scanning, shipping and storage. It also says digital records will make information easier to access, helping with fraud detection, identity checks and national security screening. The agency expects the move to reduce errors and improve the speed and efficiency of case processing.

The change will also reduce the agency's reliance on the US Treasury Department's lockbox facilities, which receive and process applications sent by mail.

USCIS processed more than 14 million immigration benefit requests in fiscal year 2025, while its lockbox facilities handled about 453 million pages of paper submissions. The agency spent about USD 396 million operating the intake system and more than USD 10 million on postage.

The government expects mandatory electronic filing to bring savings by reducing manual handling, data entry, shipping, storage and scanning costs.

There will be an exception for people who cannot file online. They can request a waiver from USCIS, which will consider the request case by case. Those allowed to file on paper through the waiver process will generally have to pay a USD 25 fee.

For some applicants, online filing could make it easier to submit documents and track cases. But people without reliable internet access or those who have difficulty using digital systems could face added challenges.

The move is part of the wider changes to the US immigration system under Trump, which have included major shifts in enforcement, screening and immigration policy. USCIS says the new filing system is intended to make the process more secure, efficient and less dependent on paper.