A US 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.

To renew the passport by mail, the passport holder must complete an application for U.S. Passport by Mail. This form may be found online and may be completed electronically or printed and hand-written. The applicant must mail the application with his/her most recent U.S. Passport, two identical photos, the passport fee, and documentation substantiating a name change, if applicable.

The standard processing time for passport renewal is four to six weeks. The government offers an expedited delivery service that will process the renewal application within two to three weeks. There are independent expediting service companies that can process the renewal within 24 hours for an additional charge in excess of the government fees. Passport holders who realize that their passport has expired and need to renew it in a hurry will want to take advantage of this service.

If the passport is not eligible to be renewed by mail, the passport holder must re-apply for a passport in person.. The Application for a U.S. Passport must be completed and submitted with evidence of U.S. Citizenship, acceptable additional identification, photocopy of this identification, two identical passport photos, and the passport fee.. The applicant must go to a U.S. Passport Acceptance Facility or Regional Passport Agency in order to get the new passport. The independent expediting service can accommodate these applicants, but applicants must first present the required documentation to the Passport Acceptance Facility or Agency.

Minors wishing to renew their passports have different guidelines. All minors whose initial passport was issued when they were under age 16 must renew their passports in person. The renewal process is similar to those renewing via mail. The minor must complete a passport renewal application, return the expired passport, provide two identical passport photos, and pay a fee. If the minor wishes to have the passport expedited, the options of the government expediting and independent expediting companies are available at an additional charge.

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.

A United States passport renewal is not as difficult a procedure as some would make it out to be. It may be accomplished either by using the mail or by going online and searching out a private service provider. The private pass port service providers can definitely speed up the procedure as compared to the standard government channels.

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