On the whole, the two verbs mean to hand in but they differ in meaning. It is also not the same which documents can be submitted and which can be filed. In the first sense, to submit means to give someone any kind of document which needs to be considered or approved. Secondly, it also means to offer a solution or a suggestion for an issue. In another sense, it means to allow, that is to let another person, group or authority to have power over you. If used respectively, it means to yield or surrender oneself to the authorities. The first meaning of to file is to arrange documents. If you file for a civil –service job, you apply for it. In legal context, it means to enter a legal document as an official record. In journalism, it refers to the arrangement or transmission by wire.
