A passport renewal may be accomplished by any U.S. citizen by
either mail or in person. Renewal by mail is only an option if the
passport holder meets all the requirements. By visiting a local passport
office, process will still take some time but it can be moved along a
bit smoother by being on hand to provide any documentation that may be
needed. There are services available online that can help to expedite
this or the government offers their own version of expedited service.
There
are certain criteria that must be met in order to renew by mail. The
old passport must be available to be returned with the application and
must be in the holder's original name. The passport cannot be more than
15 years old from date of issue and must have been issued after the
holder was older than 16 years of age.
As with anything else when
it comes to the government, there are forms that need to be completed.
The renewal form must be printed out or filled out online and submitted
along with the old passport.
The form is easily located by going on the
Internet and simply searching it out. This will need to be accompanied
by two new color photos along with any applicable fees and if there is a
name change since the issue date, supporting paperwork to that effect.
The
passport renewal normally takes four to six weeks when done through the
standard channels. The Department of State also offers an expediting
service than can shorten the time to two to three weeks.
If the need
should arise that necessitates receiving the passport faster than this,
there are private services that can expedite the process in as little as
one to two business days. These services are perfect for emergency
situations but do come with an additional fee.
Should the passport
holder not meet all the requirements to renew by mail, a trip to a
local Passport Acceptance Facility or Regional Passport Agency will be
necessary. An applicant will then need to present a properly filled out
DS-11 form along with proper identification. There will also be the need
to have new passport photos on hand when applying for the renewal. The
private service providers can still help these applicants but there will
still be a necessity to appear at a facility of this type.
The
above guidelines are strictly for adults applying for a renewal, minors
on the other hand have a few more guidelines that must be followed. They
must apply in person no matter what, if they are still under the age of
16 or if the passport was issued while they were under that age. They
then must follow the same guidelines as an adult and submit the renewal
form along with pictures, ID and the processing fee, if any. The same
rules for expediting apply for minors as they do adults in that they may
choose either the governments offering or to go with one of the private
service providers for a passport renewal.
Any U.S. citizen
residing out of the country in Canada can also renew by mail if needed.
Those that reside in other countries will however need to visit either
the U.S. Embassy or local Consulate office to renew the passport in
person. There is a complete listing of these locations that may be found
online.
The passport renewal
is probably most easily completed by going through the mail. If the
proper criteria cannot be met by the holder, then it will be necessary
to complete the process in person. It has been shown that the private
expediting services can help an applicant receive their USA passport back much quicker than the stander government expediting service.
