You do not need to panic over “tracking unavailable” alone; monitor it now, and escalate if the card is marked delivered or returned, the address is wrong, or it misses USCIS’s 90-day delivery window.
“I recently entered the US on an EW visa and paid the immigrant fee. I just got notified that my physical green card was mailed, but the tracking number shows as unavailable. Is this common, or should I be worried and inquire about it?”
Resumen
The generic “unavailable” display alone does not establish that your card is lost, although official sources do not say how common that display is. While you wait, your foreign passport with the endorsed immigrant visa is evidence of permanent-resident status for one year from admission.
What you should do depends on what the shipment status shows next and whether your 90-day delivery window has expired.
Monitor rather than file for a replacement now. Sign in to your , enroll in USPS , confirm the address USCIS has, and label your mailbox with your name. USCIS identifies these as its card-tracking and delivery-protection steps. (USCIS Card-Delivery Guide, updated October 11, 2024.)
Begin USPS missing-mail steps promptly. If USPS cannot resolve it, submit USCIS’s “Did Not Receive Card by Mail” or contact the USCIS Contact Center. (USCIS Card-Delivery Guide, “Lost or Missing Mail.”)
Submit the USCIS online help form or non-delivery . If case status shows the card was returned—or you believe it was returned—USCIS says it may be able to attempt another delivery or reissue the document. (USCIS Immigrant Fee page; USCIS Card-Delivery Guide.)
Do not file simply because tracking is unavailable just after mailing. USCIS’s instructions first distinguish a card returned as undeliverable from one that was not returned; that outcome determines the correct I-90 reason if replacement later becomes necessary. (Form I-90 Instructions, page 7.)
The 90-day period starts on your admission date if you paid before entering, or on your payment date if you paid after entering.
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Watch out for
Próximos pasos
These steps protect the delivery now and give you exact escalation points if the card does not arrive.
Today
Turn on USCIS and USPS tracking
Sign in or create an account at https://myaccount.uscis.gov/ to receive automatic case updates and any USPS tracking number. Enroll in USPS Informed Delivery at https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/pages/intro/start.action, verify the delivery address, and place your name on the mailbox—especially in a multi-unit building.
Requisitos
Only if marked delivered but absent
Start the missing-mail route if USPS says delivered
Begin the USPS missing-mail process promptly at https://www.usps.com/help/missing-mail.htm. If USPS does not resolve it, submit USCIS’s “Did Not Receive Card by Mail” inquiry at https://egov.uscis.gov/e-request/ndc; the page requests case information rather than a Form I-90 filing.
Requisitos
If the card still has not arrived
Submit a USCIS inquiry at the 90-day point
If you paid before entering, act at 90 days after admission; if you paid after entering, act at 90 days after payment. Submit https://my.uscis.gov/account/v1/needhelp or https://egov.uscis.gov/e-request/ndc. If the card appears returned or you lack the needed receipt information, call 800-375-5283 (TTY 800-767-1833), Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.–8 p.m. Eastern.
Requisitos
While the plastic card is pending
Keep your temporary evidence with your passport
Keep the passport page containing your endorsed immigrant visa and admission stamp safe. USCIS says that passport and immigrant visa are evidence of permanent-resident status for one year from your admission date.
Requisitos
Fuentes legales
These facts come from USCIS’s immigrant-fee, card-delivery, non-delivery, temporary-I-551, address-change, Contact Center, and Form I-90 materials.
USCIS Card-Delivery Guide
USCIS says to obtain card-tracking updates through an online account and monitor expected mail through USPS Informed Delivery.
How to Track Delivery
Sign into your USCIS online account to receive automatic updates, including your U.S. Postal Service (USPS) tracking number when we mail your card or travel document. If you did not file online and do not have a USCIS online account, review the instructions to create an account to track your case. Register for Informed Delivery through USPS to get daily images of mail being sent to you.
USCIS Card-Delivery Guide
If USPS marks the card delivered but it is missing, begin USPS steps promptly and then escalate unresolved non-delivery to USCIS.
Lost or Missing Mail: Documents or Cards
If your USPS tracking information shows your package was delivered but you have not received it, follow the steps recommended by USPS on the Find Missing Mail webpage. You should begin the steps as soon as you believe your mail is missing. If you have contacted USPS, but you still have not received your secure identity document (or card), and you believe it may have been returned to us, you should contact the USCIS Contact Center or submit a case inquiry in the “ did not receive card by mail ” or “ did not receive document by mail ” categories.
USCIS Immigrant Fee
This establishes the outside point for requesting USCIS assistance after paying the fee and entering on an immigrant visa.
Need Further Assistance
If you do not receive your Green Card within 90 days of paying the USCIS Immigrant Fee or entering the United States (if you paid the fee before you arrived) please submit our online help form to request assistance.
USCIS e-Request—Non-Delivery of Card
USCIS provides a dedicated inquiry when a card mailed to the address of record does not arrive.
Non-Delivery of Card
Once USCIS approves an immigration benefit for which a card issued, USCIS will mail the card to your address of record. If you do not receive a card that was mailed to your address of record, you may submit an inquiry.
USCIS I-9 Central—Temporary I-551 and MRIV
Your passport and endorsed immigrant visa provide temporary evidence of permanent-resident status while the plastic card is pending.
Temporary I-551 Stamps and MRIVs
The employee’s foreign passport with the MRIV is evidence the employee has permanent residence status for 1 year from the date of admission.
USCIS Change-of-Address Guidance
A permanent resident who moves must update USCIS and USPS separately; USPS forwarding does not protect USCIS mail.
How to Change Your Address
Additionally, all aliens in the United States must report a change of address to USCIS within 10 days of moving. Changing your address with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) will not change your address with USCIS and USPS will not forward your mail from USCIS. Please update your information with both USCIS and USPS.
Form I-90 Instructions (01/20/25)
The correct I-90 replacement reason depends on whether the undelivered card came back to USCIS.
page 7, Item 3.b
NOTE: Do not select this reason for filing if the card was mailed to you at the address you provided, and it was never returned as undeliverable to USCIS.
USCIS Contact Center
This gives the current USCIS Contact Center number and live-service hours.
Contact Us
Our toll-free number is 800-375-5283 (TTY 800-767-1833) and we answer live calls and chats Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm Eastern.
These are the official rules and procedures as published on the cited dates; rules and agency processes can change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice, and SettleKit is not a law firm.
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