President Donald Trump's Department of Homeland Security is issuing a new directive that will prohibit foreign nationals from self-submitting photographs for their legal paperwork, creating a new bureaucratic hurdle in an already difficult process.
The announcement came on Friday from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office.
"Effective immediately, the new guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual limits the use of photos to those that were taken within three years of the date a person files a USCIS form," said the announcement. "Additionally, self-submitted photos will no longer be accepted. Only photos taken by USCIS or other authorized entities will be used. This ensures every photo used in a secure document is recent, accurate, and reliable — key requirements to preventing fraud and identity theft."
"This policy change aligns with Department of Homeland Security priorities to modernize screening and vetting processes and address the vulnerabilities in identity documents," said the statement.
The announcement sparked a quick response from experts, who said that certain details of the policy aren't exactly clear.
"USCIS appears to announce that it will no longer use self-submitted photographs," wrote immigration attorney Emily Neumann on X. "Passport photos are typically submitted with employment authorization applications (EAD), travel documents (AP), and adjustment of status (I-485). Although the policy manual has been updated in some places today, the form instructions have not. It is unclear when the requirement to submit photographs will end."
This follows a number of other controversial changes at USCIS, including a new screening process that forces applicants to prove they haven't engaged in so-called "Anti-America ideologies or activities."