What to do if my documents get lost or stolen?

If you lost your documents on campus, we recommend contacting any "lost and found" desk or office in the building or department where you think you lost your passport. If the building’s lost and found does not have your documents, contact campus safety (Department of Public Safety). For general business, please dial x8281, or 610-328-8281.

Sometimes, passports found on-campus are delivered to the International Student Center. We always contact the student as soon as possible whenever this occurs. Many times it will go directly to your campus mailbox.  If possible, we recommend waiting at least one week before contacting your country's embassy or consulate about replacing your lost passport because it often takes a while for lost documents to be returned to you. If you know that your documents were stolen, make sure to report it to the police as soon as possible and get a copy of the official police report. If your documents are never found, there are different procedures that you must follow to replace each one of the documents you lost:

  1. To replace your passport, you will need to contact your home country’s embassy or consulate in the U.S. and follow their instructions on what you need to do to obtain a new passport. Contact information can be found at Embassies and Consulates nearest campus. That is usually NYC or DC.
  2. You cannot replace your visa (a sticker with your photo placed in your passport) while in the U.S. Next time you leave the U.S. (no need to leave just for this), you will need to apply for a new visa at a U.S. consulate abroad. Fortunately, you do not have to have a visa in your passport while you are in the U.S., it is only required for travel.
  3. You can request a replacement of your I-20 or DS-2019 from our office by submitting the following forms:
    1. Request to Replace Lost, Stolen or Damaged I-20 via the ISC portal
    2. Request to Replace Lost, Stolen or Damaged DS-2019 via the ISC portal.
  4. If you are an F-1 student on OPT, and your EAD card was lost/stolen as well, you will have to apply for a replacement card with USCIS. You will need to complete a new I-765 and pay the filing fee. If this applies to you, please make an appointment with the ISC Team to begin the process.

Identity Theft Concerns:

If any of your financial documents (such as credit cards, checks, ATM cards, etc.) were lost/stolen, contact your banking institution to cancel or put a temporary hold on your accounts.

You may want to check your credit report to make sure no one has opened a credit card or other account under your name. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires 3 companies to provide you with one free credit report every 12 months. See the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's web page Fighting Back Against Identity Theft. For a free credit report, go to annualcreditreport.com.

Feel free to email, phone or visit the ISC if you have further questions.