--- title: Uploading documents description: How to fulfil a requirement on a case — uploading files, reusing a file you already gave us, replacing a rejected file, and combining multi-page scans. product: Lexpoint — Individuals audience: People managing their own Canadian immigration doc_type: guide canonical_url: https://docs.lexpoint.io/individuals/cases/uploading-documents/ app_routes: https://my.lexpoint.io/app/cases/[case]/members/[member]/applications/[application]?tab=documents requires: A case with an application whose Documents tab has at least one requirement last_verified: 2026-09-04 keywords: upload document Lexpoint, replace document, multi-page scan, combine PDFs, file size limit, choose from Drive, Google Drive upload, supported file types license: Documentation © Lexpoint. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. --- # Uploading documents Every upload requirement on a case is fulfilled the same way: open it, add one or more files, and the requirement moves from **Missing** to **In Progress** while the files are reviewed. ## Before you start Have the file ready as **PDF, JPG, PNG, DOC, or DOCX**, at **10 MB or less per file**. ### Scan the document — do not photograph it Use a scanner, or a scanner app on your phone. Most phones have one built in, and the free ones straighten the page, crop to its edges, drop the background, and produce a PDF. A photo of a document taken with the camera app is a poor substitute, for three reasons: 1. **It looks unprofessional.** A page shot at an angle on a kitchen table, with a shadow across it and a worktop in frame, is what the officer reviewing your application sees. 2. **It is far larger than it needs to be.** A camera photo of one page is routinely several times the size of a scan of the same page, and carries no more information. 3. **Its size degrades your other documents.** This is the part that is not obvious. When your package is assembled, every document mapped to the same portal slot is merged into one PDF, and that bundle is compressed toward a size target — around 4 MB. One oversized photo eats that budget, so everything merged alongside it is compressed harder to fit. A single camera snap can visibly degrade the scans it travels with. :::caution[If a document must be a photograph] Some things genuinely are photographs rather than documents. Those are fine. The point is not to photograph something that could have been scanned. ::: ### Give the file a sensible name Name the file for what it is — `passport-biographical-page.pdf`, not `IMG_4821.jpg`. Lexpoint renames files to a consistent pattern when your representative accepts them, so the final package is tidy regardless. But that happens at the end. Until then the name you chose is what appears in your case, in the vault, and in front of whoever is reviewing it — and a screen of `IMG_4821`, `IMG_4822`, `IMG_4823` is slow to review and easy to mix up. ## Add a file to a requirement 1. Open the application's **Documents** tab and find the requirement. 2. Select the upload button on the right of its card. 3. A window opens titled **Add **, with two tabs: **Upload new** and **Saved files**. 4. On **Upload new**, drag files onto the drop zone or select it to browse. It reads *PDF, JPG, PNG, DOC, DOCX (Max 10MB per file)*. Under the drop zone, **Choose from Drive →** opens Google Drive if you have [connected it](/individuals/account/integrations/); otherwise the control reads **Connect Drive to choose files →** and takes you to Integrations. While the picker loads it reads *Opening Drive…*. Native Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides are refused — *Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides cannot be imported yet. Download as PDF first.* 5. The files you picked are listed with their sizes. Remove any you did not mean to include. Anything over the limit is marked *exceeds 10MB limit* and keeps **Upload** disabled. 6. Select **Upload**. A progress bar shows *Uploading X of Y…* and the window closes when it finishes. ```media id: cases-upload-modal type: screenshot caption: The add-document window on the Upload new tab, with two files staged and their sizes shown. shot: /app/cases/[case]/members/[member]/applications/[application]?tab=documents → upload button on any requirement → Upload new tab with two files staged. Demo account, light mode, 1440×900. Redact the requirement title in the window heading if it names a person, and redact the staged filenames. src: /media/individuals/cases-upload-modal.webp ``` ## Reuse a file you have already given us The **Saved files** tab lists documents already in your account, with a search box. Attaching one there links the existing file to this requirement — the same file, not a copy. If the tab reads *No saved files yet*, nothing is stored under your account yet; upload on the other tab. ## Working with the files on a requirement Files sit in a list under the requirement card once one is attached. | On a file row | What it is | |---|---| | Filename | Select it to open the document viewer. | | Page count and size | Shown once the file has been processed. | | Padlock | The PDF is password-protected or encrypted. | | Status pill | The file's own review status — see [Document review statuses](/individuals/cases/review-statuses/). | | Drag handle | Reorders files within the requirement. | | Small dot on the right | There is an unread comment on that file. | :::caution[File order is page order] Dragging files inside a requirement sets the order they appear in when the requirement is combined into one PDF. Reorder before you combine, not after. ::: ## Replacing a file A file that came back as **Needs Changes** is corrected by putting a new file in its place. 1. Select the file to open the document viewer. 2. Read the note under the preview — it says what needs to change. 3. Use **Replace document** in the viewer toolbar and pick the corrected file. The same file types are accepted. Replacing keeps the file's place in the requirement. Uploading a second file instead leaves both on the requirement, which is what you want only when the requirement genuinely needs both. **Delete document** is also in the viewer toolbar. It asks you to confirm, and it cannot be undone. ## Combining a multi-page document When a requirement holds more than one file, its card shows **N files · Combine**. 1. Drag the files into the order the pages should appear. 2. Open the requirement's actions menu and choose **Combine PDFs**. 3. The card shows **Combining…** while it runs, and the result replaces the separate files. Combine needs at least two files. It is refused, with the reason shown on the menu item, when: - Fewer than two files are attached. - A file is HEIC or WebP — convert those to PNG or JPG first. - A file is a type that cannot be combined. Supported: PDF, PNG, JPG, Word, Excel, RTF, TXT, ZIP. - The files are too large to combine in the browser. Try fewer or smaller files. - The requirement is already accepted, or the application is read-only. If one file defeats the merge, it is tagged **Blocks Combine** and the row explains: *This file blocked Combine. Exclude it, or re-export as a standard PDF, then combine again.* :::note[On full-representation cases] If your representative handles assembly for you, **Combine PDFs** is disabled with *Your representative will combine documents for this requirement.* Upload the pages and leave them. ::: ## What happens after you upload The file appears with **Reading file** while Lexpoint's assistant analyzes it, then settles on **Pending Review** until your representative reviews it. The requirement stays **In Progress** until the file is accepted. Nothing more is asked of you in between. ## Related - [Document review statuses](/individuals/cases/review-statuses/) — what the pills mean and when to act - [Requirements and checklists](/individuals/cases/requirements/) — finding the requirement in the first place - [Messages on a case](/individuals/cases/messages/) — asking a question about a specific file - [Your documents](/individuals/documents/) — where uploaded files live in your account - [Integrations](/individuals/account/integrations/) — connect Drive so Choose from Drive is available ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I just take a photo of my document with my phone? Use a scanner app rather than the camera. A camera photo is much larger than a scan of the same page, and because everything mapped to one portal slot is merged and compressed toward a size target, one oversized photo forces harder compression on every document merged alongside it. Scanner apps are free, built into most phones, and produce a straightened, cropped PDF. ### Does the file name matter if Lexpoint renames files anyway? Renaming happens when your representative accepts the file. Until then, the name you chose is what appears in your case and in front of whoever reviews it, so a descriptive name is worth the few seconds. ### What file types and sizes can I upload? PDF, JPG, PNG, DOC, and DOCX, up to 10 MB per file. A file over the limit is flagged in the list and the Upload button stays disabled until you remove it. ### My document is several pages photographed separately. What do I do? Upload all of them to the same requirement, put them in the right order by dragging, then use Combine PDFs from the requirement's actions menu. That order becomes the page order of the combined file. ### Can I upload a file I already gave you on another requirement? Yes. The add-document window has a Saved files tab listing files already in your account, so you attach the existing file instead of uploading it twice. ### Can I pick a file from Google Drive? Yes, from the Upload new tab, once Drive is connected. Choose from Drive opens a picker for PDF, JPEG, PNG, DOC, and DOCX. Native Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides cannot be imported yet — download as PDF first.