To replace a Social Security card as an adult noncitizen, you must establish identity, and a work-authorized replacement also requires evidence of current work-authorized lawful immigration status. SSA’s policy manual (POMS) says its adult-noncitizen policy generally requests a current DHS lawful immigration document together with an unexpired foreign passport, with stated exceptions, including a conditional secondary-identity-evidence path for nonwork requests by applicants without a lawful immigration document. A Guatemalan passport fits that passport category, but we could not confirm acceptance of a Guatemalan DPI or consular card from the SSA sources.
Quick summary: Expect office review of your evidence. A qualifying applicant may start online, but that is different from completing replacement entirely online. Replacement is free. We could not confirm an exact delivery time. Do not mail your immigration document: SSA instructs its staff never to ask a noncitizen to do so.
Steps to request a replacement
- Identify the kind of replacement you need. Identity evidence is always required and must match the existing SSA record. A work-authorized noncitizen must also establish current work-authorized lawful immigration status. A nonwork replacement has a separate purpose test; this guide cannot establish your individual eligibility.
- Prepare the evidence appropriate to your status. Use the document combinations below. The immigration document and passport are separate pieces of evidence. If you lack an unexpired passport, ask SSA to review the policy exception rather than assuming you cannot apply. If you lack a lawful immigration document, ask whether you meet the separate requirements for the nonwork secondary-evidence path described below.
- Distinguish an online start from an online replacement. The fully online replacement-card application requires US citizenship established on the SSN record. SSA’s policy manual (POMS) says some applicants who cannot use that route may start an SSN application online and then present evidence at a local SSA field office or Social Security Card Center. Eligibility to start online is conditional.
- Present evidence within the online-start window. If you submit the SSN application online, provide all required evidence at the office within 45 calendar days of submission. If you miss that window, the policy requires a new application. Do not mail your immigration document.
SSA’s public replacement page could not be reached when checked on October 22, 2026. Confirm appointment arrangements and office contact details with SSA.
Documents for adult noncitizens
These combinations come from SSA’s adult identity evidence policy. They do not establish that every holder qualifies for every kind of replacement.
| Document or situation | What the SSA policy establishes |
|---|---|
| Current DHS lawful immigration document | SSA’s policy manual (POMS) says this is generally requested with an unexpired foreign passport. Identity evidence must match the existing SSA record. |
| Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card | The adult identity list includes it and also requires an unexpired foreign passport. The list includes temporary I-551 stamp/MRIV evidence when DHS has not issued the card. |
| Expired I-551 | May be accepted with a Notice of Action, Form I-797, and an unexpired foreign passport under the stated rule. An expired card alone is not the combination described. |
| Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record | Listed with an unexpired foreign passport. |
| Form I-766, Employment Authorization card | Listed with an unexpired foreign passport. |
| No unexpired foreign passport | The policy says that in some cases an applicant has a current lawful immigration document but no unexpired passport; in those situations SSA accepts the lawful immigration document alone. The examples include a refugee or someone who may have entered without inspection. This is not a blanket passport waiver. |
| No U.S. lawful immigration document; nonwork request | For a nonwork SSN request, an applicant without a U.S. lawful immigration document who meets the applicable SSA requirements for someone lawfully in the U.S. without immigration documents, someone without work authorization, or an undocumented applicant may use secondary identity evidence. Examples include an unexpired valid U.S. driver’s license that is not suspended or revoked, a U.S. state-issued non-driver identity card, or a certified medical record or qualifying letter with extract data showing the applicant’s name and date of birth or age. These documents establish identity under that conditional path; they do not establish work authorization or eligibility by themselves. |
| Birth record | SSA does not accept a birth record as identity evidence. |
| Evidence not in English | SSA has a translation workflow and can enter an application pending receipt of a translation. We could not confirm a translation fee or turnaround time. |
Guatemalan documents
The State Department’s Guatemala civil-document information identifies the Guatemalan passport as a Pasaporte. Applying SSA’s general rule, an unexpired Guatemalan passport belongs in the foreign-passport evidence category; accompanying immigration evidence depends on your status.
State describes passports issued by Guatemalan embassies and consulates in the United States as machine readable with a blue cover. That description is not proof of US work authorization. If you need information about obtaining the document, see our Guatemalan passport guide for residents of the USA.
State identifies RENAP as the issuing authority for the Documento Personal de Identificación (DPI). It does not establish SSA acceptance. We could not confirm affirmative acceptance of a Guatemalan DPI or Guatemalan consular card in the SSA sources; we also cannot infer a categorical prohibition. The consular identification provision in SSA’s specific-document policy concerns Mexican consulates and Mexican citizens, so it cannot establish a rule for Guatemalan cards. Our DPI guide for residents of the USA covers the Guatemalan document separately.
State also identifies the Certificado de Nacimiento. SSA’s birth-record policy explains that a birth record is inadequate to show that the person is still alive, so a Guatemalan birth certificate alone cannot establish identity for this request.
Replacement limits
The standard limits are 3 replacement cards per year and 10 in a lifetime, subject to exceptions. Replacements for a legal-name change or the addition, change or removal of a restrictive legend are excluded from the count. SSA policy requires supporting evidence for an exception once a limit has been reached. Ask SSA to assess your replacement count and circumstances.
What happens next, cost and timing
SSA reviews the evidence; an online start does not complete that review. An application involving non-English evidence may be entered pending translation. For a nonwork replacement, the SSA policy requires evidence of a new, different, current and valid nonwork need; it does not establish that you personally qualify.
Fee: free. Exact delivery time: not confirmed. USA.gov confirms that Social Security card replacements are free. The 45-calendar-day period concerns presenting evidence after an online submission; it is not a processing or mailing estimate. Confirm delivery details with SSA before relying on an arrival date.
This is general information, not legal advice; take case-specific immigration questions to a DOJ-accredited representative or an immigration attorney.
Frequently asked questions
Can I complete replacement entirely online?
SSA policy for the fully online replacement-card application requires US citizenship established on the SSN record. A noncitizen may qualify to start an SSN application online, but must still present required evidence at the office within 45 calendar days.
Is a Guatemalan passport sufficient by itself?
SSA’s policy manual (POMS) says SSA generally requests a current DHS lawful immigration document and an unexpired foreign passport. The passport alone does not establish work authorization. The SSA policy also describes circumstances in which the lawful immigration document alone is accepted when there is no unexpired passport. For a nonwork SSN request, an applicant without a U.S. lawful immigration document who meets the applicable SSA requirements for someone lawfully in the U.S. without immigration documents, someone without work authorization, or an undocumented applicant may use secondary identity evidence. Examples include an unexpired valid U.S. driver’s license that is not suspended or revoked, a U.S. state-issued non-driver identity card, or a certified medical record or qualifying letter with extract data showing the applicant’s name and date of birth or age. These documents establish identity under that conditional path; they do not establish work authorization or eligibility by themselves.
Does SSA accept a DPI or Guatemalan consular card?
We could not confirm affirmative acceptance in these sources. The Mexican consular-card provision cannot answer the Guatemalan-document question. Ask SSA about your actual evidence.
What is the fee and delivery time?
Replacement is free. We could not confirm an exact delivery time.
Do all replacement cards count toward the limits?
No. The standard limits are 3 per year and 10 in a lifetime, but legal-name changes and restrictive-legend changes are excluded, and SSA has an exception process.
Sources and research dates
The following table gives the dates and times these sources were checked, in UTC.
| Source | Fetched UTC |
|---|---|
| Free replacement confirmation | 2026-10-22T23:36:07.249271Z |
| Replacement evidence | 2026-10-22T23:36:07.249271Z |
| Adult identity evidence | 2026-10-22T23:55:05.275974Z |
| Specific identity documents | 2026-10-22T23:55:05.654817Z |
| Replacement limits | 2026-10-22T23:55:05.748303Z |
| Fully online replacement policy | 2026-10-22T23:57:29.005317Z |
| Online start and office evidence | 2026-10-22T23:57:29.005317Z |
| Guatemala civil documents | 2026-10-08T18:54:17.802Z |
| Birth records and identity | 2026-10-22T23:55:05.712496Z |
| Evidence review and translation | 2026-10-22T23:56:54.307554Z |
Pages that could not be reached: replacement page, 2026-10-22T23:55:06.149503Z; SSN page, 2026-10-22T23:56:54.731438Z; fee FAQ, 2026-10-22T23:57:29.384991Z; SSA support page, 2026-10-22T23:58:17.546760Z. These SSA pages could not be reached at the times listed.
