U.S. Department of Homeland Security Seal, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Certain Individuals Requesting Parole Can Now File Form I-131 Online

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sent this bulletin at 06/09/2023 12:01 PM EDT

Certain Individuals Requesting Parole Can Now File Form I-131 Online

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced that certain individuals requesting parole based on urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit can now file Form I-131, Application for Travel Document, online. This is an important step in USCIS’ efforts to use technical solutions to streamline and improve processing efficiency and reduce wait times.

Effective immediately, the following individuals are eligible to file Form I-131 online:

Individuals requesting parole based on urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit for an individual outside the United States (under application types 1.e. or 1.f. on the paper Form I-131), who are not seeking initial parole under a USCIS family reunification parole process (i.e., Cuban Family Reunification Parole Program, Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program, or Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program); or
Individuals already paroled inside the United States who are requesting a new period of parole, or re-parole (under application types 1.e. or 1.f. on the paper Form I-131), to remain in the United States.

To file Form I-131 online, individuals must first visit my.uscis.gov to create a USCIS online account. There is no cost to create an online account, and the account offers a variety of features, including the ability to receive case status updates, access all notices, and upload additional evidence. By offering the option to file Form I-131 online for certain categories, USCIS continues to make the process of applying for immigration benefits more efficient and convenient for more applicants.

Online filing of Form I-131 is not available for individuals requesting initial parole under a USCIS family reunification parole process; however, noncitizens already paroled into the United States under a USCIS family reunification parole process may file for re-parole online.

Online filing is also not available to individuals already inside the United States filing Form I-131 to request a re-entry permit, refugee travel document, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) travel authorization document, Advance Parole Document, (including those already paroled into the United States who want to seek parole back into the U.S. after a departure), advance permission to travel for Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) long-term residents, or individuals seeking a waiver of the filing fee for Form I-131. These individuals must continue to file the paper Form I-131 by mail.

Please note, however, that individuals already paroled inside the United States who want to request a new parole period, or re-parole, to remain in the United States as a parolee may file Form I-131 online. For more information about the streamlined re-parole application process for Afghan parolees, see Re-Parole Process for Certain Afghans webpage.

If an individual who is not eligible to file Form I-131 online files the form online, USCIS will deny the application and will not refund the fee. USCIS is working to expand online filing for Form I-131 to additional applicants to make the process of applying for immigration benefits more efficient and convenient and increase our operational efficiencies.

For more information about which forms are eligible for online filing, please visit our Forms Available to File Online page.

For more information about online filing, including helpful videos and filing tips, please visit our File Online page.

For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

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