The Importance of Your Alien Registration Number

Legally migrating into the United States is a multi-step process that requires many documents and files. One such piece of documentation is the alien registration number.

An alien registration number is a nine-digit number that is assigned to any person who is selling to legally migrate into the United States permanently. Anyone who receives a green card is also assigned an alien registration number. Short-term visitors, such as those on a work or tourist visa, are not assigned alien registration numbers, because they are only temporary residents.

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Service or USCIS is the federal agency that assigns this documentation. The alien registration number is created as a way to tie together so the documentation that a person who is looking to get permission to become a legal permanent resident of the United States will have.

The alien registration number may also be referred to as A-Number, A#, Alien Number, registration number, USCIS Number, or USCIS#. It is important to check carefully through all documentation as it may be listed there under one of these names

Why You Must Have The Alien Registration Number ?

Today, you need an alien registration number because it is impossible to be a legal immigrant in the United States without it. If you are looking to build a future for yourself in America, or raise a family, or make a career and work in America, then you must have an alien registration number. A legal immigrant can use their alien registration number when they were looking for employment in place of a social security number.

An alien registration number is a legal requirement on all immigration paperwork and other official documentation an immigrant will have. All the processes of getting a work permit, applying for a green card, and shooting for US citizenship all require an alien registration number.

Examples of legal documents that are not possible to obtain without an alien registration number are:

• United States Citizenship Application (Form N-400) ;
• Green Card Renewal Application (Form I-90) ;
• Employment Authorization Application (Form I-765) ;
• Petition To Remove Conditions On Residence (Form I-751) ;
• Petition For Relative Allocation (Form I-130).

Even after obtaining permanent residency and a green card, there are still processes that will require an alien registration number, such as renewing your green card, which happens every ten years. In addition, if you have obtained your green card through marriage to a United States citizen or permanent resident, that condition will have to be removed from your green card after two years. An alien registration number is also required for that process.

An immigrant with an alien registration number does not mean that that person had United States Citizenship, but having that document is an important part of the process of gaining citizenship. This is why it is ideal to have this document.

How To Make Sure That You Have Your Alien Registration Number ?

Due to the fact that there are so many steps and documents that are a part of the process of gaining United States Citizenship or a Green Card, it is possible that you are unsure whether or not you have been assigned your shown registration number. However, if you have already started the process of legal immigration, it is possible to check through some of the documentation you have been given for your alien registration number. Here are some of the documents that will have your alien registration number on them:

• Employment Authorization Document, also known as a Work Permit ;
• Immigrant Visa ;
• Immigration Fee Handout ;
• Immigration Data Summary.

The alien registration number will also be displayed on your green card, passport, and immigration visa stamp.

What To Do If You Cannot Find Your Alien Registration Number ?

If you are unable to find your alien registration number or if you do not possess any of the documents to check it, it is still possible to verify that you have it.

The process requires using the Freedom of Information Act to request your immigration file, which will contain your alien registration number. You can also book an appointment with a local USCIS office to ask for assistance in obtaining the necessary documents.

An alien registration number does not expire and it does not need to be renewed. Even though as a legal immigrant other forms of documentation expire and have to be renewed, an alien registration number is for life. So it is important to have it, and not to misplace any documentation that contains it.