US moves to make immigration applications online-only: What you must know

US immigration goes digital: Green card, citizenship, asylum filings may soon require online filing

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a new rule giving US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) the authority to make certain immigration benefit applications mandatory online, potentially affecting green card applications, citizenship requests, asylum filings, employment authorisation and other immigration benefits.

 

However, applicants do not have to switch all their applications online immediately.

 

Under the new interim final rule, USCIS can require electronic filing once a particular form has been available for e-filing for at least 180 days. Before making that form online-only, USCIS must provide at least 60 days' notice to applicants.

 

The rule, published in the Federal Register on August 11, is aimed at moving USCIS away from paper-based processing, reducing administrative costs and allowing immigration applications to be processed more efficiently.

   

What exactly has changed?

 

Until now, USCIS has generally allowed applicants to use paper filing for forms for which both paper and electronic options were available.

 

The new rule creates a regulatory framework under which USCIS can require e-filing for individual forms.

 

Once a form is designated for mandatory electronic filing, applicants will generally have to submit it through a USCIS online account. They can either complete the form online or, where permitted, upload a PDF version of the completed form and supporting documents.

 

The change is therefore not an immediate online-only mandate for every immigration application. Instead, it gives USCIS the ability to move forms online one by one.

 

 Which immigration applications could be affected?

 

The potential scope is wide because USCIS has already made electronic filing available for a number of major immigration forms.

 

These include applications and petitions related to:

 

• Green cards, including Form I-90 for replacing or renewing a permanent resident card
• US citizenship, including Form N-400
• Family-based immigration, including Form I-130
• Asylum, including Form I-589
• Employment authorisation, including Form I-765
• Temporary Protected Status, including Form I-821
• Employment-based immigration, including certain I-140 petitions
• Extensions or changes of status, including Form I-539
• Removal of conditions on residence, including Form I-751

 

The exact forms that become mandatory e-file cases will depend on subsequent USCIS notices.

 

So, does an applicant have to file online today?

 

No.

 

This is the most important distinction in the new rule.

 

The rule gives USCIS the power to impose mandatory e-filing, but a paper option does not disappear simply because a form has an online version.

 

USCIS must first designate the form for mandatory electronic filing and provide at least **60 days' notice** before the requirement takes effect.

 

This means applicants should continue following the filing instructions applicable to their specific form until USCIS announces that electronic filing has become mandatory.

 

 What if someone cannot file online?

 

USCIS has created a waiver mechanism for applicants who cannot reasonably comply with the electronic-filing requirement.

 

Applicants can request an exemption from mandatory e-filing by submitting Form I-936, Request for Waiver of E-Filing Requirement.

 

The waiver request carries a $25 fee, although the rule provides for fee-waiver possibilities in certain circumstances. USCIS will consider waiver requests individually.

 

This provision is particularly relevant for people who have limited access to computers or the internet or face other circumstances that make electronic filing difficult.

 

 Why is USCIS doing this?

 

The answer is partly about scale — and cost.

 

USCIS processed more than 14 million immigration benefit requests in fiscal year 2025. Its lockbox facilities, which receive and process mailed applications, handled approximately 452.6 million pages of paper submissions during the year.

 

Paper applications have to be physically received, opened, sorted, scanned and entered into USCIS systems before they can move through the electronic adjudication process.

 

DHS says mandatory e-filing would reduce manual handling, data-entry work, shipping, storage and scanning, while improving the agency's ability to process and analyse immigration data.

 

 Could online filing make applications faster?

 

USCIS expects it to.

 

Electronic applications can move directly into the agency's digital systems rather than first passing through a paper-processing chain.

 

The agency also says online forms can reduce certain errors because applicants can receive prompts when required information is missing or entered incorrectly.

 

DHS says the move could also improve fraud detection and security screening because electronic data is easier to access, analyse and cross-check.

 

However, online filing does not guarantee faster adjudication. Processing times can still depend on the complexity of an application, background checks, visa availability and USCIS workloads.

 

How widely is online filing already being used?

 

The transition is already well under way.

 

According to DHS, about 44% of USCIS benefit requests were filed electronically in FY2025. But adoption varied considerably by form.

 

For example, approximately 62% of N-400 citizenship applications and 68% of I-90 green card replacement applications were filed electronically. By comparison, only about **12% of H-1B I-129 petitions** were filed online.

 

That difference is one reason USCIS is not switching every form to mandatory e-filing at once.

 

What does this mean for Indian applicants?

 

For Indian nationals applying for US immigration benefits, the eventual change could affect a broad range of applications.

 

For example, an Indian professional applying for an employment authorisation document, an Indian family sponsoring a relative, a green card holder renewing a permanent resident card or an immigrant applying for US citizenship could eventually have to complete the process electronically if the relevant form is designated for mandatory e-filing.

 

But there is no blanket online-only requirement today.

 

Applicants should therefore continue to check the instructions for the specific USCIS form they are filing.

 

 What immigration experts have said

 

The move towards mandatory electronic filing is not entirely unexpected.

 

The CIS Ombudsman, an independent office within DHS that identifies systemic problems in the USCIS immigration-benefits process, had recommended greater digitisation of USCIS records and processes. The Ombudsman's 2025 annual report specifically addressed the need to improve the agency's handling and digitisation of records.

 

The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has also previously engaged with USCIS on the agency's move towards electronic filing. AILA's records show that USCIS has been discussing mandatory electronic filing for immigration benefit requests for more than a decade.

 

More recently, AILA has raised broader concerns about how USCIS's increasing reliance on electronic systems interacts with procedural requirements. In comments on a separate 2026 USCIS signature rule, the organisation specifically called for clearer guidance around electronic filing and signature issues.

 

 What happens if an applicant makes a mistake online?

 

This is one area applicants will need to pay particular attention to.

 

Online filing may reduce some basic errors because the system can prompt applicants for missing information. But uploading the wrong document, entering incorrect information or submitting an incomplete application can still create problems.

 

That is especially important for complicated applications involving large amounts of supporting evidence.

 

USCIS has been separately tightening its approach to evidence. In a policy update effective August 5, the agency said it was reinforcing evidence standards and seeking to reduce what it described as frivolous immigration benefit requests.

 

For applicants, therefore, online filing should not be confused with simpler filing. The process may become more convenient, but the underlying eligibility and documentation requirements remain.