Updated November 4, 2026

Lost or stolen Green Card: how to replace it (and what to do abroad)

Replace a lost or stolen Green Card inside the United States by filing Form I-90 online or by mail with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), or file Form I-131A at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate if you are stranded abroad. The Form I-90 fee is $415 online or $465 on paper.

For Form I-131A carrier documentation abroad, the fee is $575 and must be paid online before your embassy appointment. While Form I-90 is pending, you can request a free temporary I-551 (ADIT) stamp as proof of status for work and travel.

Which form do you file when your Green Card is lost or stolen?

Losing your physical card does not end your permanent resident status. The USCIS Policy Manual states that lawful permanent resident (LPR) status ends only if it is rescinded by USCIS, terminated in removal proceedings, or abandoned (such as by filing Form I-407).

You still have to replace the physical card. Under Section 264 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), every alien age 18 and older must carry their registration receipt card in their personal possession at all times, and failing to do so is a misdemeanor. The right form depends on where you are and what kind of Green Card you held.

How to replace a lost Green Card inside the U.S. (Form I-90)

If you are inside the United States, replace a lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed card by filing Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, online or by mail. If you are requesting a fee waiver on Form I-912, you cannot file online and must mail a paper package.

Before you pay or mail your form, verify the current filing fee on USCIS Form G-1055 (Fee Schedule). USCIS rejects applications sent with an incorrect fee, and filing fees are non-refundable. When filing by mail, you can pay by credit, debit, or prepaid card using Form G-1450, or from a U.S. bank account using Form G-1650 (or submit Form G-1651 if you qualify for a paper fee payment exemption).

• Pick the right reason code in Part 2. Lawful permanent residents and commuters select Part 2, Section A, Item Number 2.a. (My previous card has been lost, stolen, or destroyed). Conditional permanent residents complete Section B and select Item Number 3.a. Stolen and lost cards use the exact same category.
• Check whether 2.a./3.a. or 2.b./3.b. (never received) applies. Do not select 2.b. or 3.b. if USCIS mailed your card to the address you provided and it was never returned to USCIS as undeliverable. Check Case Status Online or call 800-375-5283 first. If the card was not returned as undeliverable, you must file under reason 2.a. or 3.a.
• Attach required initial evidence. Under Item 2.a. and 3.a., submit a legible photocopy of your lost Permanent Resident Card if you have one, or a copy of a government-issued ID showing your name, date of birth, photograph, and signature (such as a passport, driver's license, or military ID).
• Check mandatory fields and sign in ink. USCIS rejects Form I-90 if Family Name, Mailing Address, or Date of Birth in Part 1 is blank, or if the form is unsigned. Stamped or typed names are not accepted.
• Use a valid U.S. mailing address. USCIS will not mail a Green Card to a foreign address, except for alien commuters picking up their card at a designated U.S. Port of Entry or applicants on U.S. military or government orders abroad using armed forces or diplomatic postal systems.
• Mail paper packages to the Phoenix Lockbox. For U.S. Postal Service (USPS), send to: USCIS, Attn: I-90, P.O. Box 21262, Phoenix, AZ 85036-1262. For FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries, send to: USCIS, Attn: I-90 (Box 21262), 2108 E. Elliot Rd., Tempe, AZ 85284-1806. Clip Form G-1145 to the first page for an email or text acceptance notice.
• Complete biometrics within 90 days. After you file, USCIS sends a Form I-797C appointment notice for an Application Support Center (ASC) to capture your photograph, signature, and fingerprints for FBI background checks. You must complete biometrics within 90 days of the initial scheduled appointment notice, or USCIS may deny your Form I-90 for abandonment.

Rules for 2-year conditional residents and cards lost in the mail

Conditional permanent residents (CPRs) with a 2-year Green Card through marriage or investment have a strict 90-day cutoff. If your conditional status is not expiring within 90 days, file Form I-90 under Part 2, Section B, Item 3.a. to replace a lost or stolen card. The replacement card will carry the same 2-year expiration date as the card you lost.

If your 2-year card is expired or will expire within 90 days, you cannot file Form I-90 for any reason, and USCIS will deny it if you do. Instead, you must file Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, for marriage) or Form I-829 (Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove Conditions). Once USCIS receives your properly filed Form I-751 or I-829, it issues a Form I-797 receipt notice that automatically extends your status while the petition is pending. If your petition leads to an interview, see our guide to the marriage green card interview.

If your card was lost in the mail before reaching you, USCIS holds undeliverable cards returned by USPS for 60 business days (12 weeks) while searching its systems for an updated address. If no updated address exists, USCIS destroys the card. You must always file Form I-90 to get a replacement card, even if USPS lost it. Whether you owe a new fee depends on who caused the failure:

• No new fee required (USPS or USCIS error): USPS lost, misdirected, or destroyed the mail, or wrongly marked you as deceased or not living at your address. Or you updated your address on time, but USCIS made a data-entry typo or system error.
• New application and fee required (requestor error): You moved and failed to report your new address within the 10-day timeframe required by INA 265, gave an incomplete or misspelled address or omitted your apartment number, or the card was mailed to the address you gave and was never returned to USCIS as undeliverable.

How to get temporary proof of status while waiting (ADIT / I-551 stamp)

A Form I-90 receipt notice (Form I-797) extends an expired Green Card for 36 months, but only when presented together with your expired physical Permanent Resident Card. When your card is lost or stolen, the receipt notice alone is not enough.

If you no longer have your physical card and need proof of status for employment or travel while Form I-90 is pending, USCIS may issue you an Alien Documentation, Identification and Telecommunications (ADIT) stamp, also known as a temporary I-551 stamp. An officer can only place an ADIT stamp in an unexpired passport or on a Form I-94 (Arrival/Departure Record), and USCIS sets the validity period based on your situation.

• File Form I-90 first. Wait 72 hours after filing to check your status online, and keep your receipt number and A-Number ready.
• Call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 (TTY 800-767-1833). Live representatives answer Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern, except federal holidays.
• Verify your identity and address. An immigration services officer verifies your identity, physical mailing address, and whether that address can receive UPS or FedEx express mail.
• Get your stamp by mail or in person. If an in-person visit is not needed, the field office reviews your file and mails you a Form I-94 with an ADIT stamp, a DHS seal, and a printed photo of you from USCIS systems (at the top right on mailed forms, or top left on in-person forms). Otherwise, the Contact Center schedules an in-person appointment at your local USCIS field office.
• Use it for Form I-9 and E-Verify. A Form I-94 with an ADIT stamp is an acceptable List A receipt for Form I-551 for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, and E-Verify. For questions about Form I-9 verification, call USCIS at 888-897-7781 (TTY 877-875-6028).

What to do if your Green Card is lost or stolen abroad (Form I-131A)

U.S. law penalizes airlines and other carriers that board passengers bound for the United States without required travel documents. If your Green Card or Reentry Permit is lost, stolen, destroyed, or damaged during temporary travel abroad, you can apply for Carrier Documentation (a boarding foil placed in your passport or a transportation letter) using Form I-131A, Application for Carrier Documentation.

To qualify as a permanent or conditional resident, you must be returning from temporary travel outside the United States of less than 1 year with a lost, stolen, or destroyed Green Card, or less than 2 years with a lost, stolen, or destroyed Reentry Permit. USCIS measures your absence from the date you departed the United States to the date you pay the Form I-131A fee online.

Check whether you need Form I-131A before paying. Under U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) policy, a carrier may board you without carrier documentation if you have been abroad less than 1 year and hold an expired 10-year Green Card, or an expired 2-year Green Card with a Form I-797 Notice of Action showing you timely filed Form I-751 or Form I-829, or if you are on U.S. military or government travel orders. Check with your airline first, because if they refuse to board you, you must file Form I-131A.

• Contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate Consular Section or check its website to confirm it processes Form I-131A and how to book an in-person appointment.
• Pay the Form I-131A filing fee online on the USCIS website before appearing in person. Check Form G-1055 for the current fee. Anyone can pay online using a credit or debit card or U.S. bank account by entering your exact first and last name, date of birth, and A-Number. Fee waivers are not available, and the fee is non-refundable.
• Print your payment receipt. USCIS rejects any Form I-131A that is not signed in ink or lacks proof of online payment (confirmation page or email receipt).
• Bring your original passport, plus a copy of all pages of your passport (including the biographic page, as required in the Form I-131A PDF instructions).
• Bring evidence of your LPR status, if available (a copy of your lost Green Card, your immigrant visa, or your CBP admission stamp).
• Bring a copy of your tickets, itinerary, e-tickets, or boarding passes showing your last U.S. departure date and intended return date.
• Bring two recent passport-style photos. While the USCIS webpage summary mentions one photo taken within 30 days, the Form I-131A PDF instructions require two identical 2-by-2-inch color passport-style photos with your name and A-Number lightly printed on the back.
• Travel within 30 days, then file Form I-90. An embassy or consulate generally issues carrier documentation within two weeks, valid for 30 days from issuance. It does not replace your Green Card, so you must file Form I-90 after returning.

How a lost Green Card affects a pending N-400 or citizenship interview

Applying for naturalization does not change the requirement under INA Section 264 to carry proof of permanent resident status at all times. Since December 12, 2022, properly filing Form N-400 provides a receipt notice that automatically extends your Green Card for 24 months (2 years) from the "Card Expires" date, but the notice must be presented together with your physical Green Card.

If you lose your Green Card, USCIS states that you generally must still file Form I-90 even if you have applied for naturalization. However, the USCIS Policy Manual (Volume 11, Part A, Chapter 3) notes that under certain conditions, such as applying for naturalization at least 6 months before your Green Card's expiration date, USCIS may issue an ADIT stamp in place of a new card. Call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283 to ask about obtaining an ADIT stamp instead of filing Form I-90.

If your citizenship interview arrives while your Green Card is missing, USCIS Form G-1151 lists what to submit and bring:

• Attach a copy of another entry document or a photocopy of your Form I-90 receipt notice showing that you filed to replace your card.
• Bring a valid state-issued identification, such as a driver's license, to your interview.
• Bring all valid and expired passports and any USCIS-issued travel documents so the officer can review your foreign travel.

What officers check at the embassy, border, or USCIS interview

Carrier documentation only lets you board a carrier to apply for admission at a U.S. Port of Entry. It does not guarantee admission. Upon arrival, CBP conducts a full inspection to verify your identity, your LPR status, and that you have not abandoned your U.S. residence. See our guide to what CBP officers ask at the US border. Prepare for these four questions and keep the matching documents ready:

1. "When did you leave the United States, and why were you outside the country for this long?"

Why they ask: For Form I-131A, your absence from U.S. departure to the date you pay the fee online must be less than 1 year (or less than 2 years with a Reentry Permit). At the border, CBP uses a general guide of whether you have been absent from the United States for more than a year, though abandonment may be found to occur in trips of less than a year if you did not intend to make the United States your permanent residence. For naturalization, trips over 180 days can disrupt continuous residence.

How to prepare: Carry your e-tickets, boarding passes, itinerary, and passport stamps showing your exact departure date, and state the temporary purpose of your trip.

2. "What ties and residence did you maintain in the United States while you were away?"

Why they ask: USCIS travel guidance states that officers weigh whether you maintained U.S. family and community ties, kept U.S. employment, filed U.S. income taxes as a resident, and kept a U.S. mailing address, bank accounts, driver's license, property, or business.

How to prepare: For longer trips, carry copies of recent pay stubs, rent or mortgage statements, IRS tax transcripts, and your U.S. driver's license.

3. "What happened to your Permanent Resident Card, and can you prove your LPR status and identity?"

Why they ask: Both Form I-90 and Form I-131A require you to establish your identity and LPR or conditional LPR status.

How to prepare: Explain plainly when and how the card was lost, stolen, or destroyed, and show a photocopy of the lost card, your passport with your immigrant visa or initial I-551 stamp, or your Form I-90 receipt notice.

4. "Have you ever been in exclusion, deportation, or removal proceedings, or filed Form I-407 to abandon your status?"

Why they ask: Part 3, Items 4 and 5 of Form I-90 ask both questions directly, and USCIS runs FBI fingerprint checks during biometrics.

How to prepare: Answer truthfully and ensure your explanation matches Part 8 (Additional Information) of your Form I-90. Under 8 CFR 264.5(g), LPRs in removal proceedings remain entitled to evidence of status until ordered excluded, deported, or removed.

What if your Form I-90 is denied, or you need to withdraw or change your address?

If you move while your case is pending, INA Section 265 requires you to report your new address to USCIS within 10 days through your USCIS online account or Form AR-11. Do not mail an address change to a USCIS Lockbox.

If you want to withdraw a pending Form I-90, mail a written request to: Texas Service Center, 6046 N Belt Line Rd., STE 114, Irving, TX 75038-0015. USCIS does not refund filing fees.

If USCIS denies your Form I-90, 8 CFR 264.5(f) states you cannot appeal the decision. You may file a new Form I-90 with a new fee, or file a motion to reopen (stating new facts with evidence) or a motion to reconsider (showing USCIS misapplied law or policy) on Form I-290B within 30 days of the decision (33 days if mailed to you).

Visaful is an AI mock interview app for US visa interviews: an AI officer asks your visa's questions out loud and shows what to fix.

This is interview practice, not legal advice. For questions about your own case, talk to an immigration attorney. Visaful is not affiliated with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or any government agency.