Being a permanent resident means that you have permission to live and work in the U.S. permanently. It also means that after five years (or three years if you are married to a U.S. citizen) you may apply for citizenship. However, there are certain things that may compromise your eligibility to become a U.S. citizen. For example, if you leave the U.S. for a period longer than one year without getting permission, the USCIS will assume that you have abandoned your permanent residence and you will no longer be a permanent resident. Also, if you commit even a minor crime, the offense could be grounds for deportation.
If you have any questions about your immigration status, please call one of our immigration centers to set up a free appointment to meet with an immigration counselor.
Replacing a Lost, Damaged, Expiring or Expired Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)
What should you do if your green card is lost, damaged, expiring, or has expired?
-
Complete Form I-90 Application to Replace Permanent
Resident Card:
- Download the form from the USCIS website or call the toll-free forms request line at (800) 870-3676 to request that the form be mailed to you. The form may also be completed and submitted electronically through the e-filing system at www.uscis.gov/e-filing.
- Include the Filing Fee:
- The application fee is $290 and the biometrics fee is $80,
meaning that the total filing fee is $370*. If the card was issued before the
applicant's 14th birthday and the applicant is applying because of an expiring
or expired card, pay only the $80 biometric fee.
*Fees listed as of April 20, 2009. Please check USCIS Immigration Forms website for updated fees.
- If the applicant is mailing the application, ensure that the check or money order is made payable to "Department of Homeland Security." If submitting the form electronically, payment must be made with a credit or debit card.
- The application fee is $290 and the biometrics fee is $80,
meaning that the total filing fee is $370*. If the card was issued before the
applicant's 14th birthday and the applicant is applying because of an expiring
or expired card, pay only the $80 biometric fee.
-
Mailing the Application:
- Send the application by Certified Mail, Return
Receipt Requested, to:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
P.O. Box 54870
Los Angeles, CA 90054-0870
-
For non-U.S. Postal Service (USPS) deliveries
(e.g., Federal Express, UPS or DHL), mail to:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Attention: I-90
16420 Valley View Avenue
La Mirada, CA 90638
- Send the application by Certified Mail, Return
Receipt Requested, to:
- Documents for the Biometrics Appointment (the USCIS will notify you of the time and location of this appointment):
If replacing an Expired, Expiring, Lost, or Mutilated Permanent Resident Card (Green Card) you should take these additional documents to your biometric appointment::- The original expiring or expired card. If the card was lost stolen or damaged, and you do not have a copy, you must take a government issued identification such as driver's license, state issued picture ID card, passport or any other document containing your name and date of birth.
- You do not need to submit photographs with your application. USCIS will notify of the time and location where you must go for the biometrics.
- The original or certified copy of a court order making the legal change.
- The marriage certificate reflecting the new name.
- To replace a card because of a change in any other biographic data, bring copies of documentation to prove that the new data is correct.
Correcting a Permanent Resident Card (I-551)
- Complete Form I-90 Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card
- If the error was the fault of USCIS, the individual does NOT have to pay the filing fee. If the error was the individual’s fault, he/she DOES need to pay the fee.
- Please be advised: If the error was the fault of USCIS, then on the I-90 form itself, under Part 2, Question 2, the applicant should mark answer “d” as the reason for filing. Then, the applicant should attach the incorrect permanent resident card (green card) to the I-90 and, if possible, a photocopy of the original application the applicant submitted which had the correct information on it (as proof that the original documentation was correct).
- Mail the Application Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested
- Mail this form to the service center that originally issued the card, not to Los Angeles.
