Comment by junaid_97
1 day ago
I'm buildingan open-source way to fill U.S. immigration forms without fighting clunky PDFs
Github: https://github.com/athos2113/fillvisa-os
Demo: https://fillvisa.com/demo/
US Immigration still relies on outdated XFA PDFs - you can't fill them on your browser. Most immigrants end up printing the form and fill it manually.
So, I converted the PDF forms into smart web forms. They are replica of the official USCIS forms and follow conditonal logic. In the output, you get the official USCIS pdf form filled.
I was stuck unable to fill out a PDF I-864 for immigration because the required fields were non-editable. And opening the PDF in a PDF editor or Photoshop would require a password that was not available. So I had to create a PDF-to-JPG-to-PDF pipeline:
https://github.com/whyboris/PDF-to-JPG-to-PDF
Interesting approach.
How would turning the PDF into JPG allow you to edit/write inside?
Resort to Photoshop / editor at that point. I still prefer that over printing, writing, and then scanning.
I hope this becomes obsolete by no longer being necessary
USCIS is working towards turning it's forms into web-forms. Some forms are available to file online : https://www.uscis.gov/file-online/forms-available-to-file-on...
But, I'm guess it'll take some time
Interesting. I downloaded some PDFs for the adjustment of status forms recently and most of them were editable but only partially - the conditional fields couldn't be edited it seemed.
Yup. Those fields are dynamic, encoded in XFA -> JS. But, you can only access them via Adobe
Apple preview and the add text button got me through all the USCIS forms. You can use AI computer control to do this stuff now, right?
> You can use AI computer control to do this stuff now, right?
Speaking as someone who had to do a lot of immigration work to move to Japan, I can think of no work I would want to have a close eye on than immigration paperwork. One error is all it takes for a clerical rejection or similar. I had a professional lawyer working on mine and still cross checked every detail, and found errors!
That's cool. How are you gonna get it in the hands of people that would need it?
Thanks!
Primarily by sharing the web version (fillvisa.com) on subreddit and FB groups. People complain about the USCIS PDF regurlarly, so, I just pitch them the website