ASHBURN, Va. — A Loudoun County man said the United States Postal Service (USPS) lost his green card, jeopardizing his family's future in the United States.
Mohamad Hassan's wife, Reem Elbasuony, has lived in the U.S. for years, even going to college in northern Virginia.
About four years ago, he started the process of applying for a green card -- which U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) granted at the end of 2021 and shipped out in Jan. 2022.
But, that important letter never arrived.
“It's not something I can replace overnight or a merchandise that I bought," Elbasuony said. "It's something that took years of processing. So I really have no clue what to do.”
She said USPS admitted to losing her husband's green card.
The agency gave them a picture of the letter en route, but it never passed the "out for delivery" status.
“Time, money, plans, you know, like moving the whole family," Hassan said. "So it's very frustrating.”
They filed a missing mail request and later received a letter from the postmaster, saying the letter could have been delivered to the wrong address or fallen to the bottom of one of the pieces of mail transport equipment. The letter shows the mail now classified as lost.
“I tried to explain that this one contained a green card that will take months and months of processing…and what I received was a very disappointing thing, Lady or Ma'am, I really don't know where your mail is," Elbasuony said.
WUSA9 reached out to USPS three business days in a row for comment and did not hear back.
USCIS did respond, saying they cannot discuss specific cases because of privacy laws, but they did offer general information about a green card getting lost in the mail.
A spokesperson said if it's the postal service's fault, and there's documentation proving that the green card applicant can file for a replacement using Form I-90.
She said the applicant would select “my previous card was issued but never received”, and with the postal service documentation, there would be no filing fee or biometric services fee required if filing using this reason.
Elbasuony said she did that and received word this week that fees will be waived, but they still have to wait months for the new card to arrive.
“All the efforts I've been working on for the past, like almost four years, are just vanished," she said. "I really hope this doesn't happen to anybody else. Because it's very, very devastating.”
USCIS said at the end of 2021, about 50% of all I-90 applications were processed in about seven and a half months. Elbasuony said they heard it could take more than a year to process.
Without the card, Hassan said he is worried it could affect job opportunities and how quickly they can move over the rest of their family from Egypt.
USCIS, however, said those who are approved for lawful permanent resident status like Hassan, shouldn't be concerned about those problems.
A spokesperson shared the following statement:
"They remain a lawful permanent resident and are permitted to seek benefits that such status allows including employment, travel, and the ability to petition for overseas family members. If an applicant needs evidence of their lawful permanent residence status while they are waiting for a new green card, they should read here for how to obtain such documentation: https://www.uscis.gov/i-90. "