Moving? Don't Forget to Report Your New Address to USCIS

 

According to the law, all visa holders, spouses, and children must report the USCIS address change process to the immigration office within 10 days. The same obligation applies to green cardholders. The name of the form used to write a change of address is AR-11. The form consisting of straightforward questions can be obtained from the immigration office website (www.uscis.gov).

 

Why Should I Report My Change of Address to USCIS?

The process is straightforward. Almost all communication with USCIS is done by letter. Therefore, it is essential to update the government's address; otherwise, the immigration office will not contact you. This is especially important for immigrants who have pending cases and are waiting to be updated and completed. For example, are you waiting for your work permit, and is it approved and sent to the old address? If the document is lost, it will be quite a complicated process to issue a new form. Therefore, the USCIS address change application must be made in a timely and correct manner.

 

Do I Have to Pay a Fee to Make This Change?

No. USCIS address change is free, although USCIS charges a (usually high) fee for case assessment and modifications of the situation.

AR-11 Form

Be sure to send the form as "Certified Mail," and don't forget to fill in the "Return Receipt" form. Thus, you will have official evidence that the document has reached the immigration office. Make sure to keep a copy of your file before submitting the form. It is very important to keep a copy of all outgoing correspondence with the immigration office, visa applications, and answers to inquiries, if any, in a file of your own. When copies of previous transactions are not kept, there is no personal immigration law history, which can cause difficulties in subsequent visa applications.

Another way to change the address is to fill in the AR-11 form electronically on the immigration office website and submit the application online. Sometimes changes to the adress made over the internet may cause an error. In this case, it is best to notify the change of address by mail.

Failure to notify the immigration office of the change of address is subject to criminal sanctions. The immigration office can use the information in the form for statistical and recording purposes. The immigration office also can share this information with federal, state, local or foreign legal authorities.

 

What Should Be Considered When Filling Out the AR-11 Form?

An important point to note is that the AR-11 form filled in for the USCIS address change does not automatically change the pending applications' addresses at the immigration office. If there are applications in process, it is necessary to inform the immigration office of each application's address change. This can be done on the immigration office website. It is needed to change the applications' addresses by using the application number (receipt number) of each application form. This is especially important for those waiting for a green card, work permit or a travel permit. If you do not change the address, your documents may go to your old address.

How to Make USCIS Address Change?

If you decide to opt for mail communication, you must complete the AR-11 form. When you enter the USCIS website, go to the "Change of Address" section. Like any other instructions regarding your stay in the country, read the instructions calmly. The website will give you two options:

• Change of address with USCIS for people with NO pending cases; and
• Address change of those with pending case (s) with USCIS. (Note that waiting means you may be applying for the Green Card (I-485) to remove conditional status through marriage (I-751). You may be applying for naturalization, among others (N-400) alternatives ...)

Based on your current situation, click on the link that best describes your situation. After this selection, the website will take you to a second page with further instructions and an online form.

If you have a case with USCIS, provide the case receipt number, case type, and foreign registration number. After providing this information, you must fill in your personal information. Such as name, date of birth, country of birth, status in the country, old address, current address, address to which your correspondence was sent, send an e-mail, and finally send this information to the Citizenship and Immigration Services of the United States.  Therefore; your USCIS address change process will be completed.