Most adult Americans may now use online passport renewal. The online renewal application process is easier than the mail-in process. For expedited service, mail-in renewals remain required.
Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that the U.S. Department of State has finally made its online passport renewal system fully available to the American public. Americans will no longer have to renew their passports solely by printing a paper application and mailing it in with their old passport, new passport photo and check.
Now, most American adults can renew their passport through a secure online process, in addition to its long time mail-in system.
There are strict requirements that must be followed for U.S. online passport renewals.
To renew your U.S. Passport online you must meet specific eligibility requirements. Not all adult Americans are eligible to renew online.
• You can’t apply online for a first time U.S. Passport. The online portal is only for renewals.
• You must be at least 25 years old at the time of your renewal application.
• You must be renewing a U.S. Passport valid for a full ten-year term. If your passport was an emergency replacement or child’s passport, it can’t be renewed online.
• Your current passport must have been issued no more than 15 years ago, nor less than nine years ago. You can’t apply for an online renewal if your passport doesn’t expire within a year.
• Passports may not be renewed online if the renewal includes a name, gender, date of birth or place of birth change or correction.
• You must be currently physically living in the U.S. (state or territory) to renew online.
• When renewing online you don’t send in your current U.S. Passport to the U.S. Passport Agency. It must be retained in your possession in case of a problem with your renewal and it may not be damaged in any way prior to physically receiving your passport renewal. When you eventually dispose of your old passport, I highly recommend thoroughly shredding it using micro-cut shredding to protect your identity.
Please note that while you retain your old passport during the online renewal process, it’s unusable for international travel. The State Department cancels your old passport immediately following your renewal application submittal.
• You must be capable of uploading a digital passport photo with your online renewal application.
• You must be able to pay for your U.S. Passport renewal by credit or debit card. Payment services like PayPal aren’t accepted.
Online passport renewals must be accomplished via the MyTravelGov website. If you have a Smart Traveler Enrollment Programs account, you likely already have an account there.
Before you can apply to renew your U.S. Passport online, you’ll need a MyTravelGov account. If you’re enrolled in the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), you likely have a MyTravelGov account already, unless you haven’t used your STEP account in a long while.
Make sure that the full name you use for your MyTravelGov account is the same as the name on your U.S. Passport. If you’re enrolled in a U.S. Customs and Border Protection trusted traveler program like Global Entry, it should be the same name used there, too. (Your state driver’s license should also use the same name to eliminate possible confusion.)
Gather everything you need to apply for your passport renewal before you start the application in order to finish it efficiently.
Before you begin your application, gather all the information and materials you’ll need before you start. It will help you move through the online renewal process more easily.
1. Get your old U.S. Passport out, as you’ll need to input information from it for your online passport renewal. You can use your old passport even if it’s expired; however, only if it’s expired within the last five years.
2. Have your digital passport photo ready for upload. The photo has to meet specific upload requirements. It must be a color photo in the JPEG or JPG file format. It must be at least 54 kilobytes in size, but no more than 10 megabytes. The photo must be at least 600 by 600 pixels and its compression ratio must be less than or equal to 20:1.
If the photo is in black and white, not in JPEG or JPG format but another format such as PNG, TIF, or PDF, don’t bother uploading it. The same is true if it’s a scanned image, selfie, or one that you made from another photo. If you use a photo with these characteristics, it will be rejected. Don’t try texting the image to the U.S. State Department, either. They won’t accept it.
Follow the U.S. State Department’s general photo rules concerning your pose.
In addition to the above photo specifications, your image must follow the U.S. State Department’s general photo rules concerning your pose (your full face must be visible, and you must look directly forward with open eyes and a closed mouth), facial expression, attire, hats, and glasses, plus the photo’s background, which must be plain without shadows, textures, lines, or objects.
Make sure that there’s lots of room around your head in the photo for the U.S. State Department passport image tool to crop your photo. Once uploaded you’ll be able to adjust your photo to a degree, to make it acceptable for passport use, such as properly centering your head.
Once you complete your photo submission, the passport application site will give it an initial review. If your photo is rejected for any reason, the site will explain why it’s been rejected. If your photo is accepted by this first review, you’ll be able to save it. It doesn’t mean it will definitely pass the final review, but if you fully followed the rules, you should be okay.
3. Have your credit or debit card ready so you can type in its information to pay for the renewal.
Note: If you need your passport renewed quickly, you can’t apply for expedited service online. If you need expedited service you’ll have to send in a mail-in application.
The cost for online and standard mail-in renewal is the same: $130. Submitting your U.S. Passport application online won’t hasten its approval over standard mail-in renewals, and you can’t apply for expedited service for an online renewal. Only apply for an online passport renewal if you’ve not traveled internationally for at least eight weeks.
If you need to get your passport renewal more quickly, use the U.S. State Department’s mail-in expedited service. It’s currently taking just two to three weeks. Expedited service costs an additional $60. In addition, when using the mail-in passport service, if you want the U.S. State Department to use expedited one- to two-day shipping for your passport, that’s an additional $21.36.
Personally, I’m far more comfortable with the U.S. State Department’s mail-in expedited passport renewals. I never know when I’ll need my passport, so I’m going to continue applying for my renewals by mail. For those who don’t need expedited service, I recommend renewing online because it’s easier and takes less time to apply.
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After many years working in corporate America as a chemical engineer, executive and eventually CFO of a multinational manufacturer, Ned founded a tech consulting company and later restarted NSL Photography, his photography business. Before entering the corporate world, Ned worked as a Public Health Engineer for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. As a well known corporate, travel and wildlife photographer, Ned travels the world writing about travel and photography, as well as running photography workshops, seminars and photowalks. Visit Ned’s Photography Blog and Galleries.
