Reporting a Change of Address to the Immigration Service

If you aren’t a U.S. citizen you need to tell the United States Citizenship & Immigration Service (USCIS) where you are living. You have to tell them within 10 days every time you move or change your address.

U.S. citizens and non-citizens who “sponsor” an immigrant in the U.S. by signing an “affidavit of support” must also tell USCIS when their address changes. Sponsors have to report address changes within 30 days.

Fill out Form AR-11, Alien’s Change of Address Card. File the form online or print it out and mail it in. You can also report your change of address by phone. The USCIS website is available in English and Spanish, and you can fill out the Card online in English or Spanish. But the printable form is only in English.

Online:

To file online, go to the USCIS website www.uscis.gov/AR-11. The link to do a change of address online is on this page. Also make sure you click the “Change of Address” link and read the USCIS instructions on change of address. Make sure you print out the verification page when you are done. This helps you prove you told USCIS about your new address.

It can take USCIS 3-4 weeks to update your address in your file. For an urgent, last-minute change of address, it’s best to do it by phone.

Note: The process and address for filing a change of address is different if your case involves:

• a VAWA petition (domestic violence)
• a T Visa application (trafficking victim), or
• a U Visa application (crime victim)
• an I-751 waiver based on domestic violence/abuse.

The process is different for these cases even if you became an LPR or if you apply for naturalization to become a citizen (Form N-400).

Go to http://www.uscis.gov/addresschange or talk to an immigration lawyer for these cases.

By Mail:
If you want to mail the form in, go to www.uscis.gov/AR-11. Click on AR-11, Alien’s Change of Address Card Form (PDF, 301 KB). The link will open the form. You can fill it in on the computer and print it, or you can print it out and fill it in by hand.

After you fill it in, make a copy for your records. It is a good idea to send the form by certified mail, and ask for a return receipt. The post office can tell you how to do this. That way, you will know when the USCIS gets it, and you can prove that you sent it if you need to.

By Phone:
If you need to update your address right away call USCIS Customer Service at 1-800-375-5283. If you think your work permit or permanent resident card will be mailed very soon, it is a good idea to call if your address changed. You need to give them all of the same information that you would have to put on the Form AR-11, but you won’t have to fill out the form.

At the end of the phone call, the USCIS Customer Service Representative should offer you a confirmation number. Write this number down. You might also be able to ask for confirmation by email. USCIS Customer Service should send you a letter confirming your phone call. Save this letter from USCIS! If you don’t get a letter from USCIS within 30 days after your phone call, call again.

For Sponsors:
If you are a U.S. citizen or non-citizen sponsor, you have to update your address by filing Form I-865, Sponsors Notice of Change of Address. This form has to be mailed to the USCIS, and cannot be filed online. Print it off from the USCIS website, at www.uscis.gov/I-865. 

If you are a non-citizen and a sponsor, you should file both Form AR-11 and Form I-865. 

You could be charged with a misdemeanor crime. It is very important that you report the change on Form AR-11 within 10 days of moving.

USCIS has to prove you did not report it on purpose. If you are found guilty of the crime, you could be fined up to $200 and imprisoned for up to 30 days. You could also be deported.

Reporting an address change is one of the responsibilities that non-citizens have if they want to stay in the U.S. or get immigration benefits in the future.

If you are a sponsor who does not report your change of address on Form I-865 within 30 days, you could be fined for not reporting the change.

If you file your change of address online, the website asks you for information about any pending applications. This means applications that you sent but USCIS hasn’t decided on yet.

• Enter the information, and the USCIS office that is in charge of your pending application will be told within 3-4 weeks.

• Print verification (proof) that you reported the change and keep it with your records.

• It is a good idea to also call USCIS and update your address, so your pending case can be updated right away.
   

If you don’t report your new address while you have an application pending, you might miss important notices. Worse, you might not get an important document from USCIS, such as your new work permit or new permanent resident card.

If the post office doesn’t know about your new address either, they might deliver your work permit or permanent resident card to your old address. Your card will be considered lost. This means that you have to apply all over again for your work permit or permanent resident card. You might have to pay the application fee again, too.

If your card is sent to the wrong address someone might take your card and commit identity fraud. If you know your card was delivered to your old address, you might want to report the card to the police as stolen.

You can also send a letter about the address change after you call. This way, you make sure USCIS gets the information. If you want to do this, write a letter that has:

• your full name,

• your alien registration number,

• your application receipt number, and

• your new and old addresses.
   

Attach a copy of the receipt notice from your pending application. Mail the letter to the USCIS office where your application is pending.

Send the letter by certified mail. Keep a copy of the letter and the certified mail receipts.

IMPORTANT:
If you have an application pending and do not report your address change to USCIS for that application, you will not get letters from USCIS about decisions or other important information on your case. This could cause USCIS to deny immigration benefits that you applied for. In some kinds of cases, it could lead immigration authorities to place you in deportation proceedings.     

If your immigration case involved Forms I-360, I-918, I-914 or I-751 (based on domestic violence) you CANNOT change your address online or by phone. You must follow the special instructions at http://www.uscis.gov/addresschange.

If you are a non-citizen and don’t have legal immigration status in the U.S., and don’t have an application for legal status pending, get legal advice before telling the USCIS about an address change.