Does USCIS accept electronic signatures?

Quick answer · the 30-second read

Mostly no. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) accepts an electronic signature only when you file online through a USCIS account and the form prompts you to sign there. On paper forms, it wants a handwritten signature. One point causes most of the confusion. You can sign a form by hand and then send USCIS a scan, photocopy or fax of it. What you cannot do is paste an image of a signature into the form, or sign it through DocuSign, Adobe Acrobat Sign or any similar service. USCIS tightened this guidance on 10 July 2026.

KEY FACTS USCIS accepts a signature that is handwritten, or electronic where a form is filed online and the instructions allow it (8 C.F.R. § 103.2(a)(2)). A valid signature is any handwritten mark or sign made by the person. It does not need to be legible or in English. A scan, photocopy or fax of a handwritten signature is acceptable, as long as it is a copy of a document that was signed by hand. An image of a signature added to the form separately is not a valid signature. Signatures made by typewriter, word processor, stamp or auto-pen are not accepted. USCIS can ask to see the document bearing the original signature at any time. If USCIS later decides a filing was not properly signed, it can reject or deny it. USCIS updated this guidance on 10 July 2026, effective immediately for anything filed on or after that date. These rules apply to forms filed with USCIS. They do not apply to Form I-9, which employers complete and keep rather than file.

What counts as a valid signature?

USCIS handles applications and petitions for immigration benefits, such as green cards, work visas and citizenship. It calls these benefit requests, and almost all of them have to be signed by the person making the request.

The rule sits in federal regulations. A signature is acceptable if it is handwritten, or if the form is filed electronically and the instructions for that form allow an electronic signature.

USCIS describes a valid handwritten signature as any mark or sign made by the person. It does not have to be neat, in cursive, or in English. An X counts, as long as the person made it by hand.

USCIS accepts	USCIS does not accept
A signature made by hand on the paper form.	A name typed onto the signature line.
A scan, photocopy or fax of a form that was signed by hand.	An image of a signature pasted into the form afterwards, by any method.
An electronic signature made in a USCIS online account when filing online, where the form allows it.	A signature made through DocuSign, Adobe Acrobat Sign or a similar service.
Any handwritten mark, including an X. It does not have to be legible, in cursive or in English.	A signature made by a stamp, an auto-pen, a typewriter or a word processor.

Why is a scan fine but a pasted image not?

Because the question is whether a real person put pen to paper at some point.

If you print a form, sign it by hand and then scan it, the document you send is a copy of something genuinely signed. USCIS accepts that, and has done since it made a temporary pandemic policy permanent in 2022.

If you take a picture of your signature and drop it into a PDF, nothing was signed by hand. The form was assembled. USCIS says an image of a handwritten signature that is separately added to a request, by physical or electronic means, is not a valid signature.

The same reasoning rules out signing services. A signature applied through DocuSign or Adobe Acrobat Sign is not a handwritten signature, and unless you are filing online through a USCIS account, USCIS will not accept it.

When can you sign electronically?

Only when you file online through a USCIS account, and only where the form allows it. In that case you sign in the account itself, at the point the system asks you to.

Not every form can be filed online. USCIS publishes which ones can, and the list changes, so check before assuming a form is available that way.

There is one narrow exception for signing in front of a government official. USCIS gives the example of a form that can be signed electronically at an interview.

What changed on 10 July 2026?

USCIS issued a policy alert clarifying its signature rules. The guidance took effect immediately and applies to anything filed on or after that date.

The alert confirms that USCIS only accepts electronically captured signatures through a USCIS online account during online filing. It states plainly that an image of a handwritten signature added to a request afterwards is not valid. And it confirms that original signatures which are photocopied, scanned or faxed remain acceptable.

It also sets out what happens when the signature is wrong.

What happens if the signature is wrong USCIS can reject a filing that does not carry a valid signature. It can also accept a filing, start work on it, and then reject or deny it later if it decides the signature was not valid. A rejected filing can mean lost fees, lost time and, where a deadline applies, a missed deadline.

Should you keep the original signed copy?

Yes. USCIS can ask to see the document with the original signature on it at any time.

So if you sign a form by hand and send a scan, keep the paper. Attorneys and employers filing on behalf of others often build this into their process, because a request to produce the original can arrive long after filing.

There is a related practical point. Reusing the same scanned signature page across several filings, or across several pages of one filing, can draw questions about whether each was genuinely signed. Sign each document separately.

Does this apply to Form I-9?

No. Form I-9 confirms that a new employee is allowed to work in the US. Employers complete it and keep it. They do not file it with USCIS, so the rules on this page do not apply to it. Form I-9 can be completed and signed electronically, provided the system used meets federal standards.

See Can employment documents be signed electronically in the US? for how that works.

Why are USCIS rules stricter than the general law?

The ESIGN Act and state versions of UETA make electronic signatures valid for ordinary business and consumer agreements across the US. See What does the ESIGN Act require?.

USCIS sets its own signature rules for the forms filed with it, and those rules are stricter. The agency gives fraud prevention and the integrity of the benefits system as its reasons.

This is not settled ground. Immigration lawyers and professional bodies have been pressing USCIS for several years to accept digital signatures, pointing out that other federal agencies already do. USCIS has not changed its position.

What should you check before filing?

Check whether the form can be filed online. If it can, signing in your USCIS account is the simplest route.
If you are filing on paper, print it, sign it by hand, and scan it if you need a digital copy.
Do not paste a signature image into the PDF, and do not route it through a signing platform.
Keep the paper original, and be ready to produce it.
Read the instructions for the specific form, because individual forms can set their own signature rules.