Are you applying for legal permanent resident status in the U.S. and are yet to get your green card?
If yes, you are more likely to get the redesigned green card with enhanced graphics and fraud resistant features. The new features added to the card will reduce the odds of fraud or tampering in case the card is stolen or lost.
Not only the green card is getting a facelift but also the Employment Authorization Document (EAD). New work permits will have the same fraud resistant features that the new green cards will have.
As a part of the Next Generation Secure Identification Document Project of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), redesigned cards will be issued from May 1, 2017. However, USCIS will continue to issue green cards and EADs that display the existing design format until the current supplies are depleted. New and old EADs and green cards will be valid until the expiration dates of the cards.
The new cards will be more secure and will be tamper-resistant than the cards that are currently being issued. USCIS is issuing new cards with more security features aimed at enhancing document security and putting an end to fraud.
Following are the new features the new green cards and EADs will have:
- Unlike the old card that displays the photo of the holder on the front side of the card, the new card will display photos on both sides of the card.
- Both the cards will have a unique color palette and a graphic. Green cards will feature the image of the Statue of Liberty and have a green palette and the EADs will feature a red palette and the image of a bald eagle.
- Both the cards will have holographic images embedded in the cards.
- EADs and green cards will no longer have the signatures of the holders.
- New green cards will not have optical stripe that the old cards have.