Overview
- Renewals and replacements require filing a new Form I-765, with payment of the filing fee unless a fee waiver is approved.
- USCIS accepts only a narrow set of supporting items: Form I-94, a copy of the most recent EAD, two passport-style photos, a valid passport or travel document, and Form G-28 if represented.
- The agency advises submitting renewal applications as early as 180 days before the card expires to reduce the risk of gaps in employment authorization.
- The guide specifies who must use an EAD (including asylees, refugees, U visa holders, certain students, and applicants with pending I-485 or asylum cases) and who does not (such as green card holders and some employer-specific nonimmigrants).
- Lost, stolen, or damaged cards require a new I-765, while agency-made errors are corrected at no cost and typically without a new filing; beneficiary-made errors require re-filing, payment, and returning the incorrect card.