Is Your Resident Alien Card With No Expiration Date Valid?

A Green Card with no expiration date, issued between January 1977 and August 1989, is still legally valid proof of lawful permanent resident status and does not have to be renewed.¹ Your permanent residency itself never expired and never will unless you abandon it or it is taken away. The card is the problem, not the status. In 2026, carrying a document that predates every modern verification system creates friction at airports, on I-9 paperwork, at mortgage closings, and with any agency expecting machine-readable data.

Which Cards This Covers

During that twelve-year window, the agency then known as the Immigration and Naturalization Service issued Form I-551 Permanent Resident Cards without a printed expiration date, on the theory that one card would serve for life.² Cards issued since 1989 expire every ten years and include encrypted, machine-readable features.

One important boundary. If your card is labeled Form I-151, the pre-1977 version, it is no longer valid. A 1996 regulatory change terminated all I-151 cards and required holders to replace them.³ If you’re still carrying an I-151, you have no valid proof of status, even though your underlying residency hasn’t changed. File Form I-90 immediately.

You Still Have to Carry It

Federal law requires every permanent resident 18 or older to carry evidence of registration at all times. Not doing so is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $5,000, up to 30 days in jail, or both.⁴ A no-expiration card satisfies that requirement because it has never been formally invalidated.

Where the Old Card Causes Problems

Airports and Border Re-Entry

Global Entry kiosks cannot read the old card format, so trusted traveler shortcuts are off the table even if you qualify otherwise.¹ You go through manual inspection. If your photo was taken decades ago and no longer looks like you, a CBP officer may send you to secondary inspection to verify your identity, which can mean questioning, database checks, fingerprinting, and hours of waiting. Your right to enter isn’t in doubt. Your day is.

Employment Verification and E-Verify

A Green Card with no expiration date is a valid List A document for Form I-9, and employers are not permitted to demand a newer card or re-verify your eligibility based on the card’s age alone.² E-Verify is where things break. That system requires unexpired documents, and entering data from an old-format card can generate errors that block the employer from finishing the electronic case.⁵ Some employers using E-Verify will press you for alternative documents even though the law tells them not to treat the card as expired.

Mortgages, Benefits, and REAL ID

Lenders offering FHA-insured mortgages must verify lawful permanent resident status using current USCIS documentation. A 2025 HUD directive requires the mortgage file to include evidence of permanent residence issued by USCIS.⁶ A decades-old card without modern security features may not clear a lender’s compliance review, and the same pattern shows up when applying for certain federal benefits or a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license, where agencies expect a recent photograph and machine-readable data. None of these are legal rejections of your status. They’re systems that weren’t built to handle 40-year-old documents.

Replacing the Card With Form I-90

To get a modern card, file Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card, online through the USCIS website or by mail.⁷ Select the reason indicating your card has no expiration date.

You’ll need:

Your Alien Registration Number (the seven-to-nine-digit A-number on your card).⁸
The date you were admitted as a permanent resident.
Your current residential address, which USCIS uses to match its historical record and mail your new card.
A legible copy of the no-expiration card you’re replacing.
A government-issued photo ID showing your current appearance.

USCIS charges a filing fee for Form I-90, lower for online submissions than for paper. The amount changes periodically, so check the current USCIS fee schedule (Form G-1055) before filing.⁷ Personal checks, business checks, and money orders are no longer accepted for paper filings unless you qualify for an exemption.

If you can’t afford the fee, request a waiver with Form I-912. You qualify if you currently receive a means-tested public benefit, your household income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, or you can document financial hardship such as a medical emergency, job loss, or homelessness.⁹ For 2026, the 150% threshold in the 48 contiguous states is $23,940 for a single person and $49,500 for a family of four, with higher figures in Alaska and Hawaii.¹⁰

After filing, you’ll receive a Form I-797C receipt notice. Hold onto it. USCIS may also schedule a biometrics appointment for updated fingerprints, a photograph, and your signature, though this is decided case by case.⁸ Your existing no-expiration card remains valid while the replacement is processed. The new card carries a ten-year expiration date and current security features.

Getting Temporary Proof Fast: The ADIT Stamp

If you need official proof of status before the replacement card arrives, whether for urgent travel, an E-Verify problem, or a mortgage closing, request an ADIT stamp (also called an I-551 stamp). It’s a temporary stamp placed on a passport or Form I-94 that serves as evidence of permanent resident status for up to one year.¹¹

Start by calling the USCIS Contact Center or requesting an appointment through the USCIS scheduling portal.¹² An officer verifies your identity and address and confirms whether your address can receive express mail. USCIS will either schedule an in-person office visit or mail you a stamped Form I-94. In-person appointments are required when you have urgent needs, when USCIS has no usable photo of you in the system, or when your identity can’t be confirmed remotely. There is no fee for the appointment.

If Your Card Is Lost or Stolen

Losing a no-expiration card is a bigger problem than losing a modern one, because there’s no automatic extension tied to a receipt notice expiration date. You still file Form I-90 the same way. If the card was stolen while you were outside the United States, first file a police report where the theft occurred, then contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate to request a boarding foil to return home. Once back in the U.S., file Form I-90 and pay the fee immediately.¹

While waiting on the replacement, request an ADIT stamp so you have something current to carry. The alien registration rule still applies, and the misdemeanor penalty is real.⁴

Consider Naturalizing Instead

If you’ve held a Green Card since the late 1970s or 1980s, you’ve almost certainly met the five-year continuous residence requirement for U.S. citizenship. Before paying to replace a card you’ll then need to renew every ten years, weigh naturalization. The filing fee for Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, is $710 online or $760 by paper.¹³ It’s a larger fee up front, but it’s a one-time cost that eliminates card renewals for good.

Citizenship also solves every practical problem described above. Citizens can’t be deported, don’t have to carry proof of registration, face less scrutiny at the border, and can travel abroad for extended periods without risking their status. They also become eligible for federal jobs and grants restricted to U.S. nationals, can sponsor a broader range of family members, and can vote.

If you file Form N-400, USCIS automatically extends the Green Card’s validity for up to 24 months through the N-400 receipt notice, so you may not need a separate Form I-90 at all.¹⁴ For someone whose card has no expiration date, the useful part of that receipt notice is that it’s a fresh, dated document showing your status is active and under review, which is exactly what mortgage underwriters and E-Verify-using employers want to see.

1
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. LPR – Lost, Stolen or Expired Green Cards or Has No Expiration Date
2
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 7.1 Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR)
3
Social Security Administration. Evidence of Lawful Admission for Permanent Residence in the United States
4
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Alien Registration Requirement
5
E-Verify. E-Verify User Manual 2.0 Initial Verification – 2.1 Form I-9 And E-Verify – 2.1.3 Unexpired Document Required
6
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Mortgagee Letter 2025-09
7
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Instructions for Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-912, Instructions for Request for Fee Waiver
10
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Poverty Guidelines
11
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Announces Additional Mail Delivery Process for Receiving ADIT Stamp
12
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Schedule an Appointment
13
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-400, Application for Naturalization
14
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Updates Policy to Automatically Extend Green Cards for Naturalization Applicants