Renewing Permanent Residence Card
Section 264 of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides…
• "Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him. Any alien who fails to comply with [these] provisions shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."

The specific requirements and procedures for applying to renew an expiring permanent resident card are set forth in the Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] at 8 CFR § 264.5.
Replacing or Renewing Your Green Card

Replace or Renew Green Card is Suitable For:
• Permanent Residents who were issued a Green Card valid for ten years, and that card has either expired or will expire within the next six months
• Permanent Residents whose previous card was lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed
• Foreign nationals who have never received the previous Green Card that was issued by the USCIS
• Permanent Residents who were issued Green Cards before 14 years of age and have reached their 14th birthday
• Permanent Residents who have been commuters and are now taking up actual residence in the U.S.
• Permanent Residents residing in the U.S. and are now taking up commuter status
• Permanent Residents whose Green Cards contain incorrect data
• Permanent Residents whose name or other biographic information on the card has been legally changed since receiving the card last time
• Foreign nationals whose status has been automatically converted to permanent resident status (including special agricultural workers.
If you are outside the U.S. and have lost your alien registration card, contact the nearest American Consulate, USCIS Office or Port of Entry before attempting to file a Form I-90.

If your Form I-90 application is approved, you will be mailed a replacement Permanent Resident Card, Form I-551, with a ten-year expiration date from the date of issuance.

If your application for a replacement alien registration card is denied, you will receive a letter that will tell you why the application was denied. You will not be allowed to appeal a negative decision. However, you may submit a motion to reopen or a motion to reconsider with the same office that made the unfavorable decision. By filing such a motion, you may ask the office to reexamine or reconsider its decision. A motion to reopen must state the new facts that are to be provided in the reopened proceeding and must be accompanied by the appropriate documentary evidence. A motion to reconsider must establish that the decision to deny your application was based on an incorrect application of law or USCIS policy, and further establish that the decision was incorrect based on the evidence in the file at the time the decision was made.

What happens if my green card expires and I have not received a new one in the mail? Am I out of status?
No. You are not out of status. However, you must appear before an immigration officer to obtain an I-551 stamp in your valid passport. To try to prevent this, you should apply to renew your residency/green card at least 6 months before it expires.
Note: This does not apply to those having conditional residency (or 2-year resident cards). If you have a conditional residency you must apply for a removal of conditions with the Immigration Service.
How Do I Apply to Renew My Permanent Resident Card?
If you are a lawful permanent resident whose ten-year I-551 has expired or will expire within the next six months, you may renew your card by filing a Form I-90.
Applicants may also file Form I-90 on-line using an Internet connection.

Where to Apply:
• File your completed Form I-90 and appropriate fees directly at the following Lockbox address:
USCIS Citizenship and Immigration Services
P.O. Box 54870
Los Angeles, CA 90054-0870
Or, for non-U.S. Postal Service deliveries:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Attention I-90
16420 Valley View Avenue
La Mirada, CA 90638
• You may be eligible to file Form I-90 online.

Renewal Requirements:
Completed Form I-90 (Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card).
$185.00 filing fee plus $70.00 biometrics fee. There are three exceptions to having to pay the $185 application fee:
• If you are filing only because when your card was issued it was incorrect due to a USCIS administrative error.
• If you are filing only because you never received your card.
• If you are filing only to register at age 14 years, and your existing card will not expire before your 16th birthday.
All applicants, regardless of age, are required to submit the $70 biometrics services fee.
If you choose to submit your Form I-90 in paper, you must submit a check or money order payable to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Cash will not be accepted. If you choose to submit your Form I-90 electronically, you may pay by credit/debit card or by checking/savings account.

After You Apply:
USCIS will schedule your biometrics appointment to have your biometrics taken at a USCIS Application Support Center (ASC). You will be receiving a biometrics appointment notice with a specific date, time, and place where you will have your fingerprints and/or photos taken. You MUST wait for your biometrics appointment notice to arrive in the mail prior to going to the ASC for biometrics processing.

What to bring to your biometrics appointment:
• Biometrics appointment notice.
• Photo identification. Acceptable kinds of photo identifications are:

• Passport or national photo identification issued by your country, or
  Driver’s license, or Military photo identification, or State-issued photo identification card.
• Required initial evidence, including:
  o Your prior card, or
  o Other evidence of permanent residence or commuter status

Supporting documentation, which may include but is not limited to:

• Court ordered name change,
• Marriage certificate, Birth certificate, or Police report for a stolen or lost card.

If you have immigration-related questions, you may call the USCIS National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at 1 (800) 375-5283.

Lawful Permanent Residents Traveling Out of the U.S. for one year or more—Please Note:

Re-Entry Permit
Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders) use re-entry permits to re-enter the U.S. after travel of one year or more. For LPR’s returning to the U.S., re-entry permits are generally valid for two years from the date of issuance of the re-entry permit. The LPR should apply for this benefit before leaving the U.S.

Please note that a re-entry permit does not guarantee admission into the U.S. Aliens with re-entry permits are still subject to the inspection process at the port of entry. It is also important to note that travel outside of the U.S for more than one year will under most circumstances break the continuous residence requirement for later naturalization purposes. Travel for over 6 months may break the continuous residence requirement. See Section 316 (b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

How to File For a Re-Entry Permit
If the alien is a permanent resident or conditional resident, he or she must attach to Form I-131:

• A copy of the alien registration receipt card; or
• If he has not yet received his alien registration receipt card, a copy of the biographic page of his passport and the page of his passport indicating initial admission as a permanent resident, or other evidence that the alien is a permanent resident; or
• A copy of the approval notice of a separate application for replacement of the alien registration receipt card or temporary evidence of permanent resident status.

When to File
The alien must apply for the travel document before leaving the United States. Failure to do so may cause the alien to lose permission to re-enter the country, and lead to the denial of any other applications pending.

Renewing Your Green Card (PDF)