US to mandate online filing for green cards, citizenship and asylum

The US will require online applications for several immigration benefits, including green cards and asylum. Officials say the shift will cut costs, reduce errors and speed up case processing.Image used for representational purposes onlyThe US will soon require online applications for a range of immigration benefits, including green cards, citizenship and asylum, as part of a move to improve efficiency and cut operational costs. Under a new rule, forms that have been available for e-filing for at least 180 days will have to be submitted online.The rule, published by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Federal Register on Monday, also creates a process for making more forms online-only after giving at least 60 days' notice. The change could affect green card applications and renewals, family-based petitions, citizenship requests, asylum claims, employment authorisation applications and Temporary Protected Status filings.Applicants will generally file through a USCIS online account, either by completing the form online or by uploading a PDF version of the completed form along with supporting evidence. USCIS said the rule is meant to speed up its shift away from paper-based processing and reduce reliance on the Treasury Department's lockbox service, which receives and processes mailed applications.The agency said electronic filing would improve efficiency, reduce errors, and strengthen fraud detection and security screening by making immigration data easier to access and analyse. People who are unable to file online can seek an exemption by submitting a new form, which USCIS will review on a case-by-case basis before granting a waiver. In such cases, applicants will have to pay USD 25 in filing charges. In fiscal year 2025, USCIS processed more than 14 million benefit requests, while lockbox facilities handled about 453 million pages of paper submissions. USCIS spent about USD 396 million on operating lockbox intake systems and more than USD 10 million on postage alone. The Department of Homeland Security said mandatory e-filing would cut manual handling, data entry, shipping, storage and scanning costs, while speeding up adjudication workflows.With PTI Inputs - EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 11, 2026 07:24 IST