Reference
What a green card looks like
It is, at last, green. The current permanent resident card, field by field, and how to recognise the older designs that are still valid.
The short answer
The current green card, issued since 30 January 2023, is a bank-card-size polycarbonate card in a green palette with Statue of Liberty artwork, your photo on both sides, holographic images front and back, tactile printing, and no signature field. The front reads "PERMANENT RESIDENT" across the top; the back carries machine-readable lines and a partial-window photo box.
Every field on the front
- Photo (front and back)
Taken from your application; the back photo sits in the partial-window layer-reveal security feature. - Surname / Given name
As on your immigrant petition; the card is a common place people first spot a misspelling worth correcting. - USCIS# (A-Number)
Your alien registration number, 7–9 digits. - Category
The immigrant category you were admitted under, e.g. IR1, EB2, or asylum-based codes. - Country of birth
Country of birth, not citizenship. - Date of birth
As per your documents. - Resident Since
The date permanent residence began, which is the date that counts toward naturalisation eligibility. - Card Expires
10 years for permanent residents, 2 years for conditional residents. The card expiring does not end your status; it means the card needs renewing.
Telling the designs apart
Because a card stays valid until its own expiry, three designs circulate today. The 2023 design is the greenest, with the layer-reveal window on the back photo box and holography on both faces. The 2017 design is green with an embedded holographic image and no signature, but no window. The 2010 design shows a green front with the holder's signature (or "Signature Waived") and an optical data stripe on the back. Anything older than that has aged out, with the curious exception of certain 1977–1989 cards issued with no expiration date, which remain technically valid.
USCIS also keeps issuing from existing card stock after a redesign, so a card produced shortly after January 2023 can legitimately carry the 2017 look.
The photo on the card starts as your application photo
The image printed (twice) on the card is the one from your green card application: 2×2 inches, head 50–69% of the frame, white background, no glasses, no retouching: the standard USCIS shares with the State Department. Paper filings want two prints with your name and A-Number pencilled on the back; online filings upload the digital file.
Applying, renewing, or replacing?
Whichever form you're filing, the photo standard is the same. The free check measures a photo you already have against the USCIS geometry before you pay anything.
Questions
What does a green card look like?
A bank-card-size (85.6×54 mm) plastic card in a predominantly green palette with Statue of Liberty artwork. The front carries your photo, name, USCIS number, category, country of birth, date of birth, 'Resident Since' date and the expiration date; the back has a second photo, a partial-window layer-reveal feature and machine-readable lines. Cards in this design have been issued since 30 January 2023.
Is a green card actually green?
The current design is visibly green on both sides. That wasn't always true: between 1964 and 2010 the card went through blue, white and pink designs while keeping the nickname, which dates to a green-paper version from the 1940s. Green returned as the dominant colour with the 2010 redesign.
Does a green card have a signature on it?
No. Cards issued since 2017 carry no signature field. Older cards showed either a signature or the words 'Signature Waived'; its absence on a current card is correct, not a defect.
Are older green card designs still valid?
Yes. A genuine card remains valid until its own expiration date, so the 2017 and 2010 designs stay in circulation as they age out. One special case: some cards issued between 1977 and 1989 have no expiration date at all and remain valid, though replacing them is encouraged.
What is the USCIS number on the card?
Your A-Number (Alien Registration Number), 7 to 9 digits, printed on the front as 'USCIS#'. It identifies your immigration file and is the number USCIS asks for on forms, including on the back of the photos you submit with paper applications.
How we handle compliance
- We check your photo against the official rules. We never retouch your face, and we only normalize the background where the destination country permits it.
- Every requirement is cited from official government sources, with the verification date shown on the page.
- What you get is a report of measurements, not a guarantee. Final acceptance always rests with the issuing authority.