If you are not a U.S. citizen, you must tell USCIS every time you move. The AR-11 USCIS change of address filing has to be submitted within 10 days of your move, either online through your USCIS account or on paper by mail, and there is no filing fee.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1305 – Notices of Change of Address Missing that deadline is a federal misdemeanor and can also make you deportable, so it is worth doing the day you get your new keys.
Who Has to File
The rule reaches almost every non-citizen in the country. Green card holders, H-1B and L-1 workers, F-1 and J-1 students, and anyone else on a visa who moves house has to file.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. AR-11, Alien’s Change of Address Card A parent or legal guardian files for a child under 14.
The exemptions are narrow: diplomats and international organization officials on A or G visas, and short-stay visitors admitted under the Visa Waiver Program.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. AR-11, Alien’s Change of Address Card Everyone else files, including people whose status is about to expire.
How to File the AR-11
Online
USCIS wants you to file through the Enterprise Change of Address (E-COA) tool inside your USCIS online account.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How to Change Your Address It is faster, you get an immediate confirmation, and the system processes the change almost right away.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual – Changes of Address If you do not have an account yet, create one at uscis.gov before you start. Keep your passport and I-94 handy, because the online form asks for your country of citizenship and details from your most recent entry.
By Mail
You can also download Form AR-11, fill it out, sign it, and mail it in. The paper form is a single page and asks for your full legal name, date of birth, A-Number if you have one, your previous address, and your new physical address. A P.O. box will not do; USCIS wants a street address.5U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form AR-11 – Alien’s Change of Address Card
A mailed form satisfies the legal requirement.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How to Change Your Address The drawback is that paper submissions do not automatically flow into USCIS’s electronic case systems the way the online tool does. Send it by certified mail or another trackable method so you can prove you met the 10-day deadline.
Update Every Pending Application Too
This is where people get burned. Filing the AR-11 meets your reporting duty under the statute, but it does not automatically redirect mail for a pending green card, work permit, or any other benefit request. Each case file has to be updated on its own.
In the online tool, you will be prompted to enter a receipt number for every pending application you want moved to the new address.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How to Change Your Address Enter all of them. If you filed on paper, call the USCIS Contact Center and ask that each pending case be updated.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual – Changes of Address A missed request for evidence or interview notice because your file still shows the old address can sink an application, and “I moved” is not a persuasive answer.
Filings the AR-11 Does Not Cover
The AR-11 goes to USCIS. Several situations need separate paperwork.
Immigration court. If you are in removal proceedings or have anything pending before an immigration judge, you have to file Form EOIR-33/IC directly with the court, with a separate copy for each person who has a case.6Executive Office for Immigration Review. Change of Address Form (EOIR-33/IC) Putting a new address on a motion does not update your record. Missing a hearing notice because the court had your old address can produce an in-absentia removal order, one of the hardest outcomes to reverse.
F-1, M-1, and J-1 students. You must also report the new address to your Designated School Official within 10 days so your SEVIS record is updated.7Study in the States (DHS). Students: Ensure Your Address is Correct in SEVIS Contact your school’s international office and file the AR-11.
I-864 sponsors. If you signed an Affidavit of Support, you have your own 30-day address-reporting duty on Form I-865, backed by civil fines and lasting as long as the affidavit is enforceable.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1183a – Requirements for Sponsors Affidavit of Support Sign the form; USCIS rejects unsigned submissions.9U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-865, Sponsor’s Notice of Change of Address
VAWA, T visa, U visa, and I-751 abuse waiver applicants. Safe-address procedures apply. You can call the USCIS Contact Center at 800-375-5283, send a secure message through your online account, or mail a signed AR-11 or written notice directly to the service center handling your case, and USCIS recommends certified or return-receipt mail for the paper option. Ask specifically for each pending application to be updated; the change does not carry across cases on its own.10U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Change of Address Procedures for VAWA/T/U Cases and Form I-751 Abuse Waivers
What Happens If You Do Not File
Failing to report a change of address is a federal misdemeanor. The statute allows a fine of up to $200, up to 30 days in jail, or both.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1306 – Penalties Actual criminal prosecution is rare. The immigration exposure is not.
The same statute says a non-citizen who fails to file “shall be taken into custody and removed” unless you can show the failure was reasonably excusable or was not willful, and the burden falls on you.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1306 – Penalties The deportability ground appears again in the removal statute.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1227 – Deportable Aliens Beyond the statute, an outdated address means missed interview notices, missed evidence requests, and denied applications. Filing the AR-11 online takes a few minutes.