The traditional application process with the U.S. Passport Agency can take several weeks to complete the process. Passport Depot has a long standing courier service relationship with the U.S. Department of State that guarantees applications get processed much quicker and seamlessly.

You may request a passport renewal for any of the following reasons:

• Your passport is expired or will expire soon within the next 9 months.
• Your passport is low on blank visa pages.
• You have legally changed your name and your passport was issued more than 1 year ago.

To be eligible, your current passport must be:

• Valid, or expired within the last 5 years.
• In your possession.
• Undamaged
• Issued to you when you were 16 or older.
• Issued in your current name or you can document your name change.

The expiration date can be found on the page where your full name and photo are located. Look for the second to last piece of information next to your picture. The title is "Date of expiration/Date d'expiration/Fecha de caducidad." Under that should be a date in the format of day/month/year. This is the expiration date of your passport.

The State Department recommends U.S. citizens renew their passports 9 months before their expiration date since many countries require at least 6 months of validity left on your passport, not including the 6-8 weeks standard processing time. 

Your passport will need to be valid 6 months prior to departure from an international country.

You will need to get a new passport, not renewal.

A passport is considered damaged if it has extensive water damage, torn or ripped pages, unapproved holes, separated pages, a loose or missing cover, or any suspicious markings. Damaged passports cannot be renewed. If you are in this situation, you must apply for a new passport.

A child’s passport is issued when a child is under 16. It cannot be renewed in the same way as an adult passport. You must apply for a New Child Passport until the age of 16.

If you need to change the name on your passport, and your passport is less than 1 year old, you can use Form DS-5504. If your passport is over 1 year old, you will need to renew your passport. In addition to your current passport and standard documents, you will also need to submit the original name change document (marriage, divorce, or adoption).

You will need to apply for a new passport since only a 10-year passport in good condition may be renewed.

This will depend on the country you are traveling to, so it is important to check to confirm. Some countries will allow you to travel with two passports, one new, valid passport and one expired passport with a valid visa.

• Color photos must be 2 x 2 inches and have a white background and be professionally taken within the past 6 months.
• No uniforms or headgear, as well as, no white shirt.
• Eyeglasses are no longer allowed to be worn in passport photos.