USCIS can deny Form I-90 when the applicant does not establish eligibility, identity, or the required status, or fails to meet a required appointment or evidence request. A rejected filing, a denied replacement-card application, and termination of permanent-resident status are different events and require different responses. [1]
Rules that determine the answer
The replacement-card regulation requires notice of the reasons for denial and states that no administrative appeal lies from that decision. A motion to reopen or reconsider may be available under the applicable motion rules. Reopening addresses relevant new facts; reconsideration addresses an asserted error of law or policy on the existing record. Follow the actual denial’s instructions and deadline. [3] [2]
An expired ten-year card ordinarily is not, by itself, the end of permanent residence. Conversely, an I-90 receipt does not cure a separate loss-of-status issue. Conditional residents normally use the appropriate conditions-removal process rather than I-90 to extend a two-year marriage-based status. [1] Keep proof of any temporary status documentation needed for employment or travel, and verify its validity independently. A motion’s filing does not automatically stay all other immigration consequences, so any departure, reporting, or hearing deadline needs its own analysis.
What to do next
- Read whether the notice concerns rejection, abandonment, missing evidence, or a substantive eligibility issue.
- Collect the original filing, delivery records, appointment notices, evidence responses, and current status documents.
- Choose the correct remedy: correcting a rejected package, a timely supported motion, a new eligible application, or a separate status defense.
- If a criminal, abandonment, or removal issue appears, obtain advice before assuming another I-90 filing will resolve it.
Practical example
An applicant misses biometrics because the appointment was sent to an outdated address. The relevant response must address notice, the address of record, and the missed requirement, rather than merely submit a new card photograph.
For related situations, see what follows I-751 approval and naturalization with a pending I-751.
Primary sources
- USCIS: Form I-90 instructions
- 8 CFR 264.5: Replacement permanent resident cards
- 8 CFR 103.5: Motions to reopen or reconsider
Sources checked: October 31, 2026.