Where to find your A-number
The A-number is printed on most documents DHS or the State Department has given you — but it is labelled differently on each, which is why people who have one often think they do not.
Checked against USCIS guidance on September 25, 2026. The sources are listed at the end of this page.
6 steps · Checklist
Locate your A-number
The full list is at the end of the article.
Free · tick steps off on the web or in the app
On your green card
USCIS describes the current Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) as containing your name, USCIS number/A-Number, date of birth and card expiration date.
On cards issued after May 10, 2010 the number appears on the front as a 9-digit USCIS Number, without the "A". Those nine digits are your A-number.
On your work permit
USCIS describes the current Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) as containing your name, USCIS number, date of birth and card expiration date.
It is the same nine digits as on a green card. Holding an EAD is one of the commonest ways to already have an A-number without realising it.
On your immigrant visa and consular paperwork
- On the immigrant data summary you received at your embassy or consulate appointment, the A-Number is at the top.
- On the USCIS Immigrant Fee handout given at the interview, it is in the top right corner.
- On the visa stamp (visa foil) in your passport, it is shown as the Registration Number.
USCIS lists these three locations for people paying the USCIS Immigrant Fee. The same documents carry your DOS Case ID, which is a different number — see A-number vs. USCIS number vs. receipt number.
On your USCIS notices
Notices USCIS mails you, such as a receipt or approval notice on Form I-797, carry your A-number alongside the receipt number for that specific filing. The two sit near each other and are easy to confuse: the A-number starts with "A", the receipt number starts with three letters.
If it is not on anything you hold
Check an older document before concluding you have none. People routinely look only at the most recent card and miss the number on a notice from years earlier.
If nothing you hold shows one, you may simply not have been assigned one. No A-number, or the wrong one covers what to do next.
6 steps · Checklist
Locate your A-number
Check each document that carries it, in the order most likely to work.
Look at the front of your green card
Cards issued after May 10, 2010 show it as a 9-digit USCIS Number.
Look at your work permit
The I-766 carries the same USCIS number.
Check a USCIS notice
The number beginning with "A", not the three-letter receipt number.
Check your immigrant visa stamp
Listed there as the Registration Number.
Check consular paperwork
Top of the immigrant data summary; top right of the Immigrant Fee handout.
Confirm the same number appears twice
Two documents agreeing is your check against a misread digit.
Free, and yours to edit — tick items off on the web or in the MyCheck app.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the A-Number on a green card?
On cards issued after May 10, 2010 it is on the front, shown as a 9-digit USCIS Number without the "A" prefix. USCIS describes the card as containing your name, USCIS number/A-Number, date of birth and expiration date.
Is the A-Number on my work permit?
Yes. USCIS describes the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) as containing your name, USCIS number, date of birth and card expiration date. It is the same number as on a green card.
Where is the A-Number on an immigrant visa?
On the visa stamp it appears as the Registration Number. It is also at the top of your immigrant data summary and in the top right corner of the USCIS Immigrant Fee handout.
Which number on my USCIS notice is the A-Number?
The one beginning with "A". The receipt number on the same notice begins with three letters and identifies that one filing, not you.
More A-Number guides
Sources
MyCheck is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Every rule on this page is linked to its USCIS source; check the source for your own situation.
