On May 11, 2010, USCIS announced that a new Permanent Resident Card (commonly known as a "Green Card") will be issued in place of the old version. A Green Card is proof of the U.S. government's permission to live and work in the United States permanently. The newly redesigned Green Card will include state-of-the-art security controls, making the card more difficult to duplicate and making it easier on law enforcement officials to detect a counterfeit card.

The new cards will be phased-in beginning on May 11, 2010. The new Green Card will be granted to those individuals granted Permanent Residency for the first time as well as to individuals renewing their previous Green Card. In a continuation of current practice, the Green Card will have an expiration date of ten years for Permanent Residents and two years for Conditional Residents.

Permanent Residents currently in possession of a Green Card that was issued prior to May 11, 2010 need not be concerned in regards to the validity of their card. The prior version is still given legal effect until the expiration date indicated on the card. A Permanent Resident must renew his or her card each time it expires in accordance with U.S. immigration law. In the case that a Green Card is issued with an error, or if a card is lost or damaged, a new card can be requested from USCIS.

Many will be pleased to know that the new Green Card will be designed in the color of Green.