USPS lost my green card, what to do?

[PaulineD 0]

Hi.

I'm in a bit of a pickle right now. I've been waiting for my green card for 3 months now, and didn't call USCIS until about a week ago as I believed they wouldn't tell me anything until 3 months had gone by.

After finally getting to a Tier 2 customer representative, they told me that my green card was delivered in late November, less than a month after my entry to the US.

However, it was never actually delivered. I got the USPS tracking number from USCIS and punched it in, and of course it says it was delivered. Now, after contacting USPS they claim there's no information to go off of as it's been too long since it happened and the carrier doesn't recall. This is basically them freeing themselves of any responsibility.

Is there a way to handle this without having to pay the $450 fee? I can't really claim it never got delivered if USPS claims they delivered it.

[Maria2012 16]

I don't know. But I do know you can make an infopass and get an I-551 stamp until you sort this out ( that way you can travel and show proof of employment.

[Hypnos 6,576]

You would need to file an I-90 to obtain a replacement green card.

Since it was delivered (to someone else), you will likely have to pay the filing fee of $450, which is (i) complete bs (it's not your fault USPS delivered it to the wrong address), and (ii) apparrently, standard operating procedure for people who have been in the same situation.

[lilsweetie 30]

oh i am so sorry you are going through this. This is like my worst nightmare, that it shows delivered but you didn't actually receive it.

Unfortunately, you will probably have to do as HYpnos says - pay the fee for i-90 and wait

[PaulineD 0]

Thanks for all your replies.

I might just have to swallow that bitter pill and pay the fee. Has anyone gone through the process? How long does it take, and does it involve a Biometrics appointment?

The issue I have right now is that there's nothing stopping USPS from failing to deliver my next green card and I'll be in the same situation I'm in right now, although this time I'll have to make sure I know the status of my case every inch of the way.

[Hypnos 6,576]

You're right. There is nothing stopping it from happening a second or third time. It is a complete nonsense that USPS are not held responsible for their deficiency when they mis-deliver such an important document of this magnitude.

Instead, they stick the bill onto the alien, who has absolutely no recourse. People should be fired over this.

And to end my rant: Yes, it usually requires a biometrics appointment if you do not have valid biometrics on-file (previous captures are valid for 15 months).

The only time USCIS will replace your green card without a fee is if they make a verifiable mistake, or if USPS does not show the green card as "delivered". If it is shown as "delivered" - even to somebody else - you're screwed.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Hypnos

[Maria2012 16]

FYI I-90 can take up to 9 months. I got my green card with someone else's pic and it took them 7 months to send the correct one. Once you file I-90 and you get the receipt do an infopass ( free) and get the I-551 stamp in your passport.

[perfect 39]

You may already have done this but make sure your name is on the inside (if not on the outside) of your mail box.

USPS say they have TWICE delivered my daughter-in-law's social security card and yet they haven't!

SS office say it was delivered to the home address and has not been returned to them

I even called the postmaster for their city who said - it says it's been delivered but if it wasn't it was because her name wasn't on the inside of the mail box!

[Ebunoluwa 6,136]

I have read the same about making sure the inside of the mail box contains the name of the recpient and the outside the street number.

I did that in large black bold letters and so far have received all USCIS mails.

[bartvon 0]

Pauline,

 

The exact same thing happened to us.  Nothing for months, finally called USCIS and they say it was delivered 2 months ago.  What a ridiculous system - no signature required for something that costs $500+ and takes years to get.  We filed an online I-90 replacement green card form in late November 2016.  According to the waiting time website (https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplayInit.do) they are working on applications received on June 28th, so still a five month backlog.  That, too, is ridiculous: what else do you pay $500+ for and yet have to wait close to a year to get it?  Her temporary endorsement expires in June, so I'm hoping an infopass appointment will be easy to get an extension of that temporary endorsement.

 

Good luck!

[TBoneTX 43,058]

This thread is over a year old, and the OP hasn't logged on to VJ since September, so the thread is now locked to further comment.  If the OP returns and wishes to post an update, that's fine.

Edited April 2, 2017 by TBoneTX