Form I-90 (2026): How to Renew or Replace Your Green Card

Start your I-90 application by identifying why you need a new card. An expired card, a stolen card, and a government printing error use different filing reasons and evidence. If you are not sure which reason applies, Immiva’s green card preparation picks it from your answers and gives you a document list. You can also see how the preparation process works before entering your details. (USCIS instructions)

An expiring 10-year card and an expiring 2-year conditional card need different forms. Permanent residents renew through the card-replacement process. Conditional residents who want to remove conditions use Form I-751 for marriage-based residence or Form I-829 for qualifying investors, so settle which card you hold before paying a fee. (USCIS form page)

Which I-90 form filing reason applies to you?

This application replaces evidence of permanent residence. It does not grant you permanent residence for the first time, remove conditions, or make you a citizen. The official name, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, covers both renewal and replacement. (USCIS form page)

Your 10-year card is expiring or already expired

Choose the expiration reason if your card has expired or will expire within six months. You do not have to wait until the final month. Filing under this reason more than six months before expiration can result in denial. Submit a copy of the expiring or expired card. (USCIS instructions)

The expiration date on a regular 10-year card does not, by itself, end lawful permanent resident status. You still need valid evidence of that status, which is why renewal and temporary documentation matter. Citizenship is a separate option with separate requirements; the guide to naturalization eligibility can help you assess that next step. (USCIS Policy Manual)

Your card is lost, stolen, destroyed, or damaged

Choose the lost, stolen, or destroyed reason when the card is gone. A card you still possess but that is mutilated has its own reason. The instructions permit a card copy or qualifying government-issued photo identification for these categories. Losing the physical card does not turn the application into a renewal, even if you also want updated proof for work or travel. (USCIS instructions)

Your card never arrived, contains an error, or needs a new name

These situations can look similar but require different selections:

Check delivery information before selecting a reason. For a name change, use the document that legally changed your name, such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order. (USCIS instructions)

Your child turned 14, or another special reason applies

A permanent resident generally must register and be fingerprinted within 30 days after turning 14. The form distinguishes whether the existing card expires before or after the 16th birthday. The $0 birthday category has timing requirements; do not select it solely because the applicant is now 14. If you missed the window, read the official instructions before choosing another reason. (USCIS instructions)

Other reasons cover taking up commuter status, returning from commuter status to actual residence in the United States, automatic conversion to permanent residence, and replacement of certain obsolete cards. An old card with no expiration date is not necessarily an obsolete Form I-151, so identify which document you hold before deciding whether it needs replacing. (8 CFR § 264.5)

You have a 2-year conditional card

A conditional resident can use Form I-90 to replace a lost or damaged conditional card, as long as the card’s expiration is more than 90 days away. Form I-90 does not remove conditions. USCIS denies a replacement application filed within 90 days of the card’s expiration. To remove conditions, use Form I-751 for marriage-based residence or Form I-829 for qualifying investors. For marriage-based cases, start with the guide to removing conditions. (USCIS Policy Manual)

Check the government fee before you pay

As checked on October 17, 2026, the current fee schedule lists these amounts. They are USCIS fees, separate from any preparation service. (USCIS fee schedule)

The schedule does not list a separate biometric services charge for this application. Do not add the old $85 biometric charge to these amounts. If an older article quotes a different fee, the official schedule wins; use the amount for your category there.

A fee exemption and a fee waiver are different. A qualifying government-error or returned-card category already has a $0 fee. A fee waiver asks USCIS to excuse a fee that would otherwise apply, based on the waiver rules and supporting financial evidence. Having trouble paying does not change which filing reason applies to you. (USCIS fee schedule)

For a waiver request, submit the paper application with Form I-912 or a qualifying written request and the required evidence. Filing online and adding the waiver afterward does not work. Check the current fee-payment guidance before you mail payment, and if you compare preparation services, keep their charges separate from the government fee. (USCIS fee schedule)

Gather evidence for your filing reason

Start with the card, your identity information, and the document that proves why you need a replacement. Match the evidence to the reason you selected; each reason calls for its own packet. (USCIS instructions)

The table is a starting point; the full instructions still govern. Commuter and automatic-conversion categories have their own evidence lists. A passport establishes identity, but on its own it proves neither a legal name change nor a government printing error. (USCIS instructions)

Check your A-Number against the card or official records before entering it. It is different from a case receipt number and from a USCIS online account number. The A-Number explainer shows where to look. (USCIS instructions)

Send copies unless the instructions call for an original, as the DHS-error category does. A document in another language needs a complete English translation and the translator’s certification that it is accurate and that the translator is competent to translate. Keep copies of everything you submit, plus proof of delivery. (USCIS instructions)

The fact that another immigration form needed passport photos does not mean this one does. Follow the requirements for this application and your biometric appointment notice; the USCIS photo requirements guide explains why photo rules differ between forms. (USCIS biometrics policy)

Choose your filing method and check the packet

USCIS accepts online filing and paper filing. Online filing requires a USCIS account. Paper applications are scanned into USCIS’s electronic system, and USCIS sends account-access instructions if needed. Having an online account, or a paper case that USCIS scanned, is not the same as having filed online. (USCIS form page)

Filing directly with USCIS online

Use the filing option on the official form page. On October 7, 2026, USCIS also announced PDF-upload filing, allowing applicants or their representatives to upload the application and related evidence. Follow the current online instructions for the option you choose. A PDF prepared elsewhere is not a filed application until it has been submitted, however complete it is. (USCIS PDF-upload announcement)

Printing and mailing your application

The accepted edition checked for this guide is 01/20/25. Keep every page from the same edition, make the edition date and page numbers visible, and sign where required. USCIS rejects unsigned forms. Its official page lists different destinations for USPS and private couriers, so check the address for your delivery service on the day you mail. (USCIS form page)

If you want guided preparation, Immiva’s green card preparation provides the filled form, filing reason, fee, mailing address, and document list. Preparation costs $99. You review the packet before paying, then print, sign, and mail it yourself. The packet is built for paper filing, so the paper government fee applies unless you qualify for a $0 category or waiver.

Before sealing the envelope, check the filing reason, supporting documents, payment, signature, and address together. USCIS can reject a completed form when any one of those is missing, so look at everything in the envelope before it goes out. (USCIS form page)

Expect biometrics and check the right processing category

After filing, read every receipt and appointment notice. USCIS can require fingerprints, a photograph, and a signature to verify identity and perform required checks. Bring the appointment notice and identification specified in it. The biometrics appointment guide explains what the visit involves. (USCIS instructions)

The current photograph policy excludes this card-replacement application from photo reuse, so a recent photo taken for another benefit does not let you skip a new appointment. Follow the notice USCIS sends you; the restriction is about the photograph, and it does not by itself mean every fingerprint on file must be taken again. (USCIS biometrics policy)

Medical accommodations are a separate issue. The policy and regulation allow limited accommodations or waivers in specified circumstances involving confinement, advanced age, or physical infirmity, so the usual new-photograph requirement does have exceptions. Ask for the accommodation instead of deciding on your own not to attend. (USCIS biometrics policy; 8 CFR § 264.5)

If you cannot attend, ask to reschedule before the appointment and follow the instructions on the notice. The USCIS card-replacement policy discusses abandonment when required biometrics are not provided within 90 days of the appointment date listed in the initial notice, but that window is not permission to ignore the scheduled date. See how to reschedule a biometrics appointment before a conflict becomes a missed appointment. (USCIS Policy Manual)

How to check your wait

Open the USCIS processing-times tool and select the form, category, and office that match your case. Renewal and initial-issuance or replacement are separate categories, so pick the one that matches your filing. Use the inquiry-date function to check when you may ask about a delayed case.

This guide does not quote a current estimate, so look it up in the tool. A published processing figure measures cases USCIS has already completed. It does not predict a decision date for your application, and it is not the same thing as a historical median. (USCIS explanation of processing data)

Country-based holds: use the current court update

Older articles may describe country-based adjudication holds from December 2025 or January 2026. The later USCIS alert, updated August 28, 2026, reports an August 24 court order requiring normal-course adjudication of benefits requests affected by those hold policies. The January exception list is no longer the whole rule. The court-ruling explainer has the background. (USCIS court-order alert)

Normal-course adjudication does not promise approval or a completion date. If nationality-related hold language appears in correspondence about your case, read that notice closely and then check the current official alert. (USCIS court-order alert)

Know what proves your status while you wait

What you can use depends on whether you still have your card and why you filed. A filing receipt on its own does not stand in for the physical card in every situation. (USCIS extension announcement)

Federal law requires anyone 18 or older to carry the registration evidence issued to them, so replacing an expired or missing card matters for daily life as much as for your next trip. (INA § 264(e), 8 U.S.C. § 1304(e))

Renewal: keep the expired card and extension notice together

USCIS’s renewal receipt extends card validity 36 months from the expiration date printed on the card. It is not 36 months from filing, receipt, or approval. The extension announcement applies to properly filed renewal applications; show the receipt notice together with the expired card as evidence of continued status. (USCIS extension announcement)

For example, adding 36 months to a card that expired on October 17, 2026 gives October 17, 2029. The wording on your own USCIS notice is what counts when you present it, so keep the notice and the card together. (USCIS extension announcement)

If you are also considering citizenship, read the guide to naturalization with an expired card. Naturalization has its own receipt-extension policy, and the renewal application’s 36-month rule does not carry over to other receipts. (USCIS form page)

Lost card or expired extension: request temporary evidence

If your card is lost, you cannot present an expired card and renewal notice together. Contact USCIS about temporary evidence of permanent residence, often called an ADIT or temporary I-551 stamp. This can be placed in a passport or provided on a Form I-94, depending on the procedure USCIS arranges. Ask before you urgently need the proof for a job or a trip. (USCIS Policy Manual)

ADIT evidence proves status temporarily; it does not mean the replacement application has been approved. Contact USCIS as well if your extension has ended and the new card has not arrived. An online case-status page does not do the same job. (USCIS Policy Manual)

USCIS may mail temporary evidence on a Form I-94 or require an appointment; it chooses the route after weighing identity, mailing information, urgency, and other circumstances. So an ADIT request does not always produce a same-day stamp, and it does not always require a visit. (USCIS ADIT guidance)

Work and international travel

An expired card with the qualifying renewal notice is evidence of continued status and employment authorization. For a specific hiring-document question, check USCIS guidance; receipts for different applications do not all have the same effect. (USCIS extension announcement)

Before traveling, make sure you have acceptable return documents for your circumstances. A pending application does not resolve separate residence or admissibility issues arising from your travel history. If your card is lost abroad, contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate about return documentation; USCIS does not mail replacement cards to foreign addresses. (USCIS international-travel guidance; USCIS Policy Manual)

A planned long absence is a separate task from replacing the card; see the reentry-permit information for that. (USCIS international-travel guidance)

Avoid the wrong reason and respond to a denial

Check these five points before submitting:

1. Card type: confirm whether it is a regular permanent resident card or a conditional card.
2. Filing reason: distinguish renewal, loss, returned non-delivery, government error, and a later legal change.
3. Evidence: attach what that reason requires, including an original only when requested.
4. Fee and signature: use the current fee or supported waiver request, and sign the application.
5. Delivery: use the correct filing address and keep USCIS informed if your mailing address changes.

These checks follow the official instructions and form-page filing tips. The filing-rejection checklist explains why a missing signature or wrong fee can prevent USCIS from accepting a packet.

A rejection at intake and a denial after review are different. If USCIS denies the application, read the decision and its stated remedy immediately. The regulation provides no appeal from a denial, but a motion to reopen or reconsider may be available. USCIS generally requires a motion within 30 days, or 33 days when the decision was mailed; follow the decision’s specific instructions. (8 CFR § 264.5; USCIS motion guidance)

If the denial turns on a disputed legal issue, such as whether you still qualify for the document, get advice on that issue before choosing between a motion and a new filing; fixing paperwork and contesting a legal determination are different jobs.

Your next step: match the reason before filing

Use Form I-90 for the card problem you actually have. Identify the reason, check the evidence and fee for that reason, and decide how you will prove your status while waiting. For a renewal, keep the qualifying receipt and expired card together. For a lost card, ask USCIS about temporary evidence when needed. Settle those points before you pay or mail anything. (USCIS instructions; USCIS extension announcement)