Can I Renew My Green Card After It Expires? I-90, Fees, Travel

Yes, you can renew a green card after it expires. Lawful permanent residents renew by filing Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The filing fee is $415 online or $465 by mail.¹ There is no penalty for renewing late, and USCIS actually recommends filing once the card has expired or is within six months of expiring.²

Your Status Does Not Expire With the Card

The date printed on the front of a green card is the expiration date of the document, not of your permanent resident status. You remain a lawful permanent resident indefinitely unless you commit a deportable offense or abandon your residency. What you lose when the card expires is the easy way to prove that status to employers, airlines, and government agencies.²

One important boundary: this applies to standard ten-year cards. If your card is valid for two years, you are a conditional resident (typically through marriage to a U.S. citizen), and you do not renew with Form I-90. Conditional residents must file Form I-751 to remove the conditions during the 90-day window before the card expires. Missing that window can result in automatic termination of status and removal proceedings.³

What an Expired Green Card Actually Costs You

Living with an expired card creates practical problems even though your legal status is intact.

For employment, a valid green card is one of the documents that satisfies both identity and work authorization on Form I-9. An expired card no longer works for that purpose, and you would have to present a different combination of documents (such as a passport plus a Social Security card) to complete the I-9 for a new employer.⁴

Federal law also requires every permanent resident age 18 or older to carry valid proof of status at all times. Failing to do so is technically a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $100, up to 30 days in jail, or both. Enforcement is rare, but the rule is on the books.⁵

At the state level, most DMVs use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program to confirm status before issuing or renewing a driver’s license. An expired card can trigger extra verification steps and delay your license. The same friction shows up when applying for Social Security or other benefits that require proof of lawful status.

How to File Form I-90

Before you start the application, pull together:

Your Alien Registration Number (A-Number), the seven-to-nine-digit number on the front of your card.
A clear photocopy of the front and back of your expired or expiring card. If the card was lost or stolen, use a government-issued photo ID such as a passport or driver’s license instead.
The date you were originally admitted as a permanent resident.
Your current legal name, residential history, place of birth, and your parents’ first names as they appear in immigration records.

On the form, the filing reason for a standard renewal is that your card has expired or will expire within six months.⁶

If your legal name has changed since the card was issued, include documentation of the change: a marriage certificate, divorce decree, adoption decree, or other court order registered with the proper civil authority.⁷

Filing Fee and Fee Waiver

The I-90 fee is $415 online and $465 by mail as of April 2024. Biometrics are no longer billed separately; that cost is folded into the filing fee.¹

If you cannot afford the fee, Form I-90 is eligible for a fee waiver through Form I-912. USCIS grants a waiver if you meet any one of three criteria: you or a qualifying household member currently receives a means-tested benefit such as Medicaid or SNAP; your household income is at or below 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines; or you are experiencing extreme financial hardship.⁸

Online vs. Mail

Filing online through a USCIS account is the faster route. The system checks for errors as you go, lets you upload documents, gives you an immediate electronic receipt number, and saves $50 on the fee. Payment goes through Pay.gov by credit card, debit card, prepaid card, or bank withdrawal.¹

By mail, send the completed form and supporting documents with a check or money order for the exact amount, payable to “U.S. Department of Homeland Security,” to the lockbox address in the form instructions. An incorrect payment gets the whole package rejected.

Processing times move with USCIS workload and have recently ranged from roughly 4 to 10 months. Once you have a receipt number, you can look up current estimates on the USCIS website.

Proof of Status While You Wait

When USCIS accepts the I-90, you receive a Form I-797 receipt notice. That notice, carried together with your expired green card, automatically extends the card’s validity for 36 months past the printed expiration date. The pair works as valid proof of permanent resident status for both employment and travel during that window, and it counts as a List A document for a new employer’s I-9.⁹

You will also be scheduled for a biometrics appointment at an Application Support Center, where staff collect fingerprints, a photograph, and a signature. Skipping the appointment without rescheduling can delay or derail the application.

If you need proof of status before the receipt notice is enough, or before your new card arrives, you can request temporary evidence in the form of an I-94 with an ADIT (Alien Documentation, Identification, and Telecommunication) stamp. Call the USCIS Contact Center; an officer verifies your identity and mailing address, and in many cases USCIS can mail the stamped document without an office visit. You may still need to appear in person if your photo isn’t in USCIS systems, if identity cannot be confirmed remotely, or if the need is urgent.¹⁰

Traveling With an Expired Card

If you are outside the United States when your ten-year card expires, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has instructed airlines to allow you to board a flight home when the only problem is the expiration date. No transportation letter is required for that situation.¹¹

That accommodation does not extend to conditional two-year cards. Conditional residents must show that the card’s validity has been extended before boarding.¹¹

If you have already filed the I-90, carry the expired card together with the I-797 receipt notice. That combination is valid for the 36-month extension window.²

A separate issue applies if you have been outside the United States for a year or more without an approved Re-entry Permit. That absence generally breaks the continuity of your residence, and returning usually requires a Returning Resident (SB-1) immigrant visa from a U.S. embassy or consulate, which requires evidence that the extended absence was caused by circumstances beyond your control.¹² Renewing the card does not fix an abandonment problem.

Should You Apply for Citizenship Instead?

If you have been a permanent resident for five years, or three years if you are married to a U.S. citizen, you can file Form N-400 for naturalization as early as 90 days before you meet the continuous residence requirement.¹³

The N-400 fee is higher — $710 online or $760 by mail — though a reduced fee of $380 is available if your household income falls between 150 and 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.¹⁴ The N-400 receipt notice automatically extends your green card for 24 months from its expiration date, so you still have valid proof of status while the citizenship case is pending.¹⁵ If you are close to eligibility, paying once for citizenship may make more sense than paying to renew a card you will no longer need.

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Filing Fees
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Replace Your Green Card
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eCFR. 8 CFR 216.4 – Joint Petition to Remove Conditional Basis of Lawful Permanent Resident Status for Alien Spouse
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1304 – Forms for Registration and Fingerprinting
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eCFR. 8 CFR 264.5 – Application for a Replacement Permanent Resident Card
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-90 Instructions for Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Chapter 4 – Fee Waivers and Fee Exemptions
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Extends Validity of Expired Permanent Resident Cards from 24 Months to 36 Months for Renewals
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Announces Additional Mail Delivery Process for Receiving ADIT Stamp
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Expired Alien Registration Cards (I-551) – Public Information Notice
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U.S. Department of State. Returning Resident Visas
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-400, Application for Naturalization
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form N-400, Application for Naturalization Filing Fees
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Commonly Asked Questions About the Naturalization Process