Foreign nationals residing in the United States use Form AR-11, Alien’s Change of Address, to report a change of address with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Legal Obligation to File Form AR-11
As a matter of law, most foreign nationals are required to notify USCIS of an address change within 10 days. For practical purposes, filing Form AR-11 is important because all of your immigration benefits are linked to your address on file. The collection of this information is required by Section 265 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1305), and failure to report a change of address is punishable by fine or imprisonment and/or removal. Only A or G visa holders, U.S. citizens and asylees are exempt from this requirement.
Mistakes on USCIS forms can cause costly delays or a denial.
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Filing Form AR-11 will not update your address on any applications or petitions pending with USCIS. Therefore, you should file the AR-11 before you file a new application or petition if possible. If you have already filed an application prior to updating your address, you will have to complete that step separately by calling the USCIS customer service line at 1-800-375-5283. Let them know you have a pending application and need to update your address.