What is the best way to handle document submissions from clients?

Custom actions turn your chat widget into a precise intake form. For an immigration law practice, you can design an action that asks for a passport scan, then a visa application, then a supporting letter - one step at a time. The agent won’t move forward until each file is uploaded, so you never get half-complete submissions. Because each question and upload happens inside the same threaded chat, your client never has to switch to email or a separate portal. All file transfers happen over encrypted connections, keeping sensitive legal documents safe.

Once a client completes the intake, their file package lands in your team’s shared inbox. Every paralegal and attorney you invite sees the same thread, complete with the uploaded documents, so nobody works from a stale inbox or forwards attachments. You can take over the conversation with a human message if you need to clarify a missing date or request a supplementary document, and the entire exchange stays in one place. This eliminates the risk of lost emails and gives you full context before you open a case file.

Immigration practices handle multiple visa types, deadlines, and urgency levels. Conversation tags let you attach custom labels the moment a submission arrives. Tag by case type (H-1B, adjustment of status, naturalization), completeness (missing-docs, ready-for-review), or assigned team member. Later, a single click filters the inbox to only urgent I-485 petitions or any other slice. Tags make it simple to report on caseload and never let a time-sensitive submission slip through.

Chatref’s insights feature automatically analyses tagged conversations and sends you digest emails that answer one key question: where is document collection breaking down? You might see that 40% of family-based petitions are missing a birth certificate translation, or that most submissions come in on Friday evenings and sit until Monday. That data lets you adjust your intake workflow - add a custom action prompt earlier, send a targeted reminder, or shift staffing. Over time, you shorten the gap between first contact and a complete, review-ready file.

What are the security considerations for document submission?

All file transfers between clients and your Chatref agent happen over TLS-encrypted connections. Uploaded documents are stored securely on the platform and only accessible to team members who are invited to the shared inbox. Because you control the inbox’s membership, you determine who sees sensitive immigration records. For additional layers, combine custom actions with a client authentication step before the file upload triggers, ensuring you always know who submitted what.

How can I streamline the document collection process?

Replace back-and-forth email chains with a single, guided chat flow. Design custom actions that request one document at a time in the correct order - passport, then visa petition, then financial evidence. The AI agent won’t proceed until each piece is provided, so incomplete submissions drop dramatically. Pair this with conversation tags that auto-label by case type, and your team spends less time sorting and more time reviewing.

What tools are available for secure file sharing?

Chatref’s custom actions capture file uploads directly inside a chat widget that you embed on your website or client portal. There’s no need for third-party file-sharing services. The entire handoff lives in one threaded conversation, and the files are available in the shared inbox with the same encryption and access controls as the rest of your account. For firms that need to integrate with a separate document management system, you can add a custom action that triggers your existing tool.

How do I organize and manage client documents?

Start with conversation tags: assign a tag for visa type, current status, and assigned paralegal the moment a submission arrives. Use the shared inbox’s search and filter to pull up all conversations tagged “pending-evidence” in seconds. For deeper management, custom actions can push uploaded files into your document management system, but tagging inside Chatref gives you an instant, visual way to track every client’s submission stage without leaving the inbox.