The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on August 24, 2015 that the agency’s older eFiling system is being decommissioned. This system, which the USCIS now refers to as the “legacy eFiling system,” has been replaced by the more modern Electronic Immigration System (ELIS). This change will make eFiling options more limited until ELIS is expanded to include additional case types.
Legacy eFiling Includes Common Forms
The USCIS initially developed this online eFiling system in an effort to provide an alternative to the traditional system of submitting forms in a standard, paper format. Although the forms available for eFiling have changed over the years, the following forms are currently included in the legacy eFiling system.
Form I-131, Application for Travel Document
Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker
Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization
Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status
Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service
Forms in Legacy eFiling System Must be Initiated by Aug 30, 2015
Stakeholders have until August 30, 2015 to start a new form in the legacy eFiling system. And, those forms must be submitted to the USCIS by September 20, 2015. Only paper versions of these forms will be accepted for those initiated after August 30, or that will be submitted after September 20.
Processing of Pending e-Filed Cases
Those who have pending cases that were submitted through the eFiling system do not need to take any action as a result of this notice. The USCIS will adjudicate those cases to completion.
ELIS to Transform and Modernize USCIS Processing
The USCIS has struggled to transition away from a paper-based filing system, and ELIS has faced many problems since its inception. Still, as part of an overall effort to transform and modernize the USCIS, ELIS is expected to continue to develop, and ultimately serve as a far more sophisticated replacement for the legacy eFiling system.
