Petition for a US Visa: Print in Color or Black & White? Don’t Waste Your Money
How the immigration service scans documents, why a highlighter destroys text, and what an officer actually sees on the screen
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Short answer
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Should you print your US visa petition in color or black and white? Is it worth paying for color printing?
No, it’s not worth it. And this is not a blogger’s opinion, but an officially confirmed fact. Here are three key pieces of evidence:
Evidence 1: Direct USCIS answer to attorneys
In September 2023, at a quarterly meeting between USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) and AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association, the largest association of immigration lawyers, ~16,000 members), attorneys asked a direct question: “Are petitions scanned in color or black and white?” USCIS answered:
"USCIS Lockbox service providers image all scannable documents received from a petitioner, applicant, or requestor in black and white, front and back, and single-sided."
Translation and what this means
“USCIS Lockbox contractors scan all documents received from a petitioner in black and white, both sides, one page at a time.”
Put simply: it doesn’t matter how much you spent on color printing. Everything you mail gets turned into a black-and-white PDF. The color is lost forever. The officer will never see your color version.
Screenshot from the official USCIS/AILA Q&A (p. 2):
[PLACEHOLDER: USCIS/AILA Q3/A3 SCREENSHOT — insert image manually]
Full PDF document USCIS/AILA Q&A (4 pages):
[PLACEHOLDER: PDF FILE — upload USCISAndAILAFourthQuarterMeetingQuestionsandAnswersPart2.pdf manually]
Full text of the AILA/USCIS question and answer (Q3, September 27, 2023)
AILA’s question was broader than just “color or B/W.” Attorneys asked for the entire process to be disclosed:
"Would USCIS share process information on how a petition or application is scanned into the USCIS system? What mechanisms are in place for quality assurance? Additionally, are the filings scanned in color or black and white? Are they scanned single or double sided?"
Translation: “Can USCIS share information on the scanning process for petitions? What quality assurance mechanisms are in place? Are documents scanned in color or B/W? Single- or double-sided?”
"USCIS Lockbox service providers image all scannable documents received from a petitioner, applicant, or requestor in black and white, front and back, and single-sided. The Lockbox service providers also perform a quality review of work in process and have established quality controls to ensure that images meet acceptable quality measurements based on established JPMC/USCIS business requirements. The scanned images are then transmitted from the Lockbox to USCIS backend systems through a secure connection. These scanned images are accessible to adjudicators."
Translation: “USCIS Lockbox contractors scan all documents in black and white, both sides, one page at a time. Contractors also perform quality review and have standards established jointly by JPMC/USCIS. The scanned images are transmitted from the Lockbox to USCIS systems via a secure connection. These scanned images are accessible to adjudicators.”
What this means in practice
Three key facts from this answer:
- “black and white”: there are no color scanners in the system
- “accessible to adjudicators”: the officer works with the electronic file (a PDF on the screen), not the paper
- “quality controls based on JPMC/USCIS requirements”: quality standards exist, but the CIS Ombudsman 2025 report showed that in practice quality is lacking (OCR errors, unstructured PDFs). That means the clarity of your text is even more important.
Evidence 2: USCIS official page
On uscis.gov there’s a dedicated page “Tips for Filing Forms by Mail.” It’s updated and available now:
"Do not use highlighters, correction fluid, or correction tape. We use both black-and-white and grayscale scanners that will not properly read information that is greyed out, highlighted, or corrected."
Translation and what this means
“Do not use highlighters, correction fluid, or correction tape. We use black-and-white and grayscale scanners, which cannot properly read text that is shaded, highlighted, or corrected.”
Here USCIS explicitly says: they have two types of scanners: binary black-and-white (only black and white, no shades) and grayscale (shades of gray). Neither passes color. There are no color scanners in the system.
Evidence 3: Immigration attorney Tess Douglas
In December 2024 immigration attorney Tess Douglas published a LinkedIn post that drew a significant professional response:
"USCIS has said that it only uses black and white scanners. So the officer reviewing your case will never see the color copy. And highlights can come out looking redacted. USCIS recommends underlining instead."
Translation and what this means
“USCIS has said it uses only black-and-white scanners. Therefore the officer reviewing your case will never see the color version. And highlighting with a highlighter can appear as redacted. USCIS recommends underlining instead.”
The word “redacted” means that in classified documents text is blacked out. That’s exactly how your yellow highlighter can look after scanning: a black block covering the text.
Bottom line
Three independent sources (an official USCIS document, the USCIS website, and a practicing attorney) confirm the same thing: color printing when sending to a USCIS lockbox is a waste of money. The officer sees only a black-and-white PDF.
Below are details: how the scanning process works, why a highlighter is dangerous, what other lawyers and applicants say, and the rare cases where color does matter.
Complete list of USCIS requirements for document formatting
Aside from the scanner type (which we covered above), the Tips for Filing Forms by Mail page and a separate bulletin on avoiding scanning delays give specific instructions. Here they are with explanations:
USCIS requirements for paper filings (with translations)
- Ink: handwritten text: black ink only. Colored pens may not be read by the scanner.
- Signature: black or dark blue ink. Light blue, red, green may be invisible on the scan.
- Font: Courier New, 10pt, bold is recommended. This monospaced font is best recognized by the OCR system EMMA (USCIS Listening Session).
- Prohibited: highlighters, white-out (correction fluid), correction tape. All of these distort text when scanned.
- Paper: do not print forms on colored paper. The only exception: form G-28 (power of attorney to an attorney), which is printed on blue paper (Alan Lee, attorney).
- Staples and clips: do not staple documents or use paperclips or binder clips. Lockbox contractors will remove them before scanning (Dallas Lockbox tour, 2023).
- Small documents: photos or documents smaller than 4x6 inches (~10x15 cm) may be lost in the scanner. USCIS recommends attaching standard-sized copies (USCIS: Recommendations for Paper Filings).
- Electronic media: do not attach CDs, DVDs, or thumb drives. The Lockbox does not process electronic media (same source).
How the lockbox works from the inside
To understand why color doesn’t matter, it helps to know what happens to your package after you drop it in the mailbox.
What is the lockbox
The Lockbox is not a USCIS office. It’s mail processing run by JPMorgan Chase under contract with the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Bureau of the Fiscal Service). JPMorgan gets about $90 million per year for this (Center for Immigration Studies). Four facilities: Chicago, Elgin (IL), Phoenix (AZ) and Lewisville (TX). Hundreds of contract employees (not government employees) work in the lockbox, plus a few USCIS staff on site (USCIS Listening Session).
Based on a tour by an LPY Law Group attorney of the Dallas Lockbox in October 2023 and the official USCIS Listening Session, the process looks like this:
Extraction
The envelope is opened. Contents are sorted by form type. The check or money order is separated for payment processing.
Doc Prep
Everything is removed from your package: staples, clips, binder clips, colored tabs, stickers, dividers. Pages are smoothed and laid out for the scanner. Anything smaller than 4x6 inches (small photos, business cards) may be lost. USCIS recommends including standard-size copies.
Scanning
The entire packet is fed into an industrial scanner. Scanning is: black-and-white or grayscale, both sides of the sheet. The output: one large PDF.
EMMA (OCR and data extraction)
The EMMA system (Extracting, Modifying, Monitoring, and Architecture) recognizes text from the scanned forms and maps it into electronic fields. That’s why legibility is critical. OCR works best with clear black letters on a white background.
Delivery to the officer
The PDF is transferred into the USCIS system (ELIS). The adjudicating officer opens your black-and-white PDF on screen. Paper originals are forwarded to a service center or destroyed.
The Lockbox processes over 500,000 applications weekly. It operates 24/7. The target: processing within 72 hours of receipt (Dallas Lockbox tour, LPY Law Group, October 2023).
Scanning quality issues
The CIS Ombudsman 2025 Annual Report (PDF) identified serious problems: the OCR system confuses characters (i/l, q/g, nn/m, ij/y), and outputs are often huge unstructured PDFs hundreds of pages long that are not searchable. Officers spend from tens of minutes to an hour scrolling through these files to find the needed document. This is another reason to make text as clear and high-contrast as possible.
The CIS Ombudsman is an independent oversight office within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that publishes an annual report on USCIS issues.
Why a highlighter is dangerous
This is probably the most important practical takeaway in the whole article. Many people think: “I’ll highlight the key passage and the officer will notice it right away.” In reality, the opposite happens.
What you think will happen
The officer sees a yellow highlight on the important paragraph and immediately pays attention.
What actually happens
The black-and-white scanner turns a yellow highlighter into a solid black block, completely covering the text. The officer cannot read what you highlighted.
"USCIS has said that it only uses black and white scanners. So the officer reviewing your case will never see the color copy. And highlights can come out looking redacted. USCIS recommends underlining instead."
What to do instead of using a highlighter
- Underlining: works great with B/W scanning
- Bold text: if the text is printed
- Arrows in the margins: use a black pen
- A separate cover note: “See Exhibit B, page 3, paragraph 2.” The most reliable way to direct an officer to a specific spot
What lawyers say
Immigration attorneys are unanimous on this point, which is rare.
"USCIS scanners have a hard time reading pages that have been changed with highlighters or white-out."
"You should send your petition in black and white and make sure that you do not use highlights. USCIS has stated that they scan all their petitions and in scanning the color paper is useless and highlighting information makes it difficult to read."
On Avvo attorneys note: both variants (color and B/W) are accepted. The main requirement is legibility at a minimum resolution of 300 DPI. Several lawyers confirmed they’ve filed hundreds of cases in both formats without issues.
Applicants’ experiences (Reddit)
Real people who mailed petitions and saw the result in their USCIS online account:
"Everything you mail will appear on your online account as black and white."
"It's handled by a private contractor who discards every tab, clip, and pin. Then the entire packet is fed into a scanner, producing a large PDF that officers use."
"A lawyer on YouTube mentioned that the petition package gets scanned in black and white and sent online to officers, so the sticky notes would be worthless."
User r/EB2_NIW noted an important nuance: in some offices the scanners operate not even in grayscale but in binary black-and-white (only black and white, no shades of gray). That’s even worse for colored documents: any shade becomes either black or white.
Exceptions: when color still matters
Important to understand
Lockbox rules do NOT apply to all immigration filings. There are cases where color is required or useful.
1. NVC and consulates (Department of State)
When uploading documents online to the National Visa Center (travel.state.gov) the rules are directly opposite:
"If any document is in color, please scan it in color rather than black and white."
The logic is simple: with online upload the file goes straight into the system without rescanning. The officer sees exactly what you uploaded. So color documents (passport, official certificates) should be scanned in color.
2. USCIS online filing
If you file a form online through myaccount.uscis.gov and upload documents electronically, the officer sees them in color. The B/W limitation applies only to paper filings via the lockbox.
3. Documents that become unreadable in B/W
If you have a document that becomes unreadable when converted to B/W (for example, a medical report with colored fields or a diploma with a colored background), it’s better to make a high-quality B/W copy yourself with good contrast, check readability, and attach that. Don’t expect the lockbox scanner to produce a better result than your printer.
4. Form G-28
The only USCIS form printed on blue paper is the G-28. Attorney Alan Lee notes: if you print the G-28 on white paper, a lockbox worker might not notice it in the stack. Blue paper helps with physical sorting before scanning.
Recommendation table by document type
| Document type | Recommendation | Why |
|---|---|---|
| USCIS forms (I-130, I-140, I-485, I-765, etc.) | Black and white | Color is useless; you’ll waste money. Use black ink. |
| Petition letter / Cover letter | Black and white | Text document — color not needed. |
| Exhibits and attachments (EB-1A, O-1, EB-2 NIW) | Black and white | The officer sees only a B/W PDF. Savings on large packets can be significant. |
| Passport / ID copies | Color original gives a better B/W scan | A color copy scanned into B/W produces better contrast than making a B/W copy of a B/W copy. There have been RFE cases for unreadable B/W passport copies. |
| Photographs (passport-style) | Color originals, if required | Attach small photos as copies at a minimum size of 4x6". |
| Charts and graphs | Design for grayscale | Don’t rely on color. Use patterns, hatching, and labels instead of color coding. |
| Handwritten signatures | Black or dark blue ink | Red, green, and other colors may scan poorly. |
| Section dividers | Colored paper allowed | Helps lockbox staff with physical sorting before scanning. But officers won’t see them after scanning. |
| Form G-28 | On blue paper | The only USCIS form on colored paper. Helps with physical identification. |
| Documents for NVC / consulate | Color required | Different system, different rules. Travel.state.gov explicitly requires color scanning. |
Common mistakes
A highlighter turns into a black block when scanned in B/W, completely hiding the text. The officer literally cannot read what you wanted to emphasize. Use underlining or bold text instead.
Lockbox contractors remove all staples, clips, tabs, stickers, and dividers before scanning. Your color-based navigation system will be thrown away.
A typical EB-1A or EB-2 NIW petition contains 300–500+ pages. The cost difference between color and B/W printing for such volumes is substantial. And all that money will be wasted because the officer will see only a B/W PDF.
If your chart’s red and blue lines differ only by color, after scanning they will become identical gray lines. Use different line styles (solid, dashed, dotted) and labels.
USCIS explicitly warns: the scanner cannot correctly read text corrected with white-out or correction tape. If you make a mistake, reprint the page.
Bottom line
Practical takeaway
Print in black and white. Save money. Color printing when sending to a USCIS lockbox is a waste. The officer sees only a black-and-white PDF.
Exceptions:
- Passport and ID copies: color originals yield a better B/W scan
- Filing to NVC/consulate: color is required
- USCIS online filing: the officer sees uploaded files in color
- Form G-28: print on blue paper
Instead of a highlighter use underlining or bold text. Ensure maximum readability: black text on a white background, minimum 300 DPI resolution, black ink.
Sources
All statements in this article are supported by official documents and primary sources:
USCIS and U.S. government official sources
- USCIS/AILA Fourth Quarter Meeting Q&A (September 2023): direct USCIS answer about B/W scanning
- USCIS: Tips for Filing Forms by Mail: official filing recommendations
- USCIS: Recommendations for Paper Filings to Avoid Scanning Delays
- USCIS: Listening Session: Lockbox Processing: details of the scanning process
- CIS Ombudsman 2025 Annual Report (PDF): problems with OCR and scanning quality
- GAO-22-105328: Additional Actions Needed to Manage Fraud Risks: inconsistent scanning formats
- Travel.state.gov: Scanning and Uploading Tips (NVC): requirement for color scanning for NVC
- AILA: USCIS Provides Tips for Filing Forms by Mail
Attorneys and legal sources
- Tess Douglas, LinkedIn (December 2024): attorney on B/W scanners and highlighters
- Valverde Law PLLC: Tips for Filing with USCIS by Mail
- Alan Lee: USCIS Recommendations on Filing Paper Petitions
- LPY Law Group: Lessons from 2023 Dallas Lockbox Meeting
- Avvo: EB-1A: black and white or color?
- Avvo: I-130/I-485: color or B/W copies?
- Avvo: Color copies when submitting documents to USCIS
- AILA Copenhagen 2024: USCIS Now Scanning 100% of Petitions
Community and forums
- r/USCIS: Digitizing mailed paper applications
- r/EB2_NIW: USCIS scans documents in grayscale
- r/eb_1a: Preparing the Petition Package
- r/USCIS: Lockbox worker describes scanning process
- r/USCIS: Highlighting documents/evidence
- r/immigration: Passport pages: color or black & white?
- Instagram: USCIS Filing Tip: no highlighters
The information in this article is based on community experience and open sources. This is not legal advice. For your specific situation consult a licensed professional.