How Long Does It Take To Renew a US Passport

If you currently need to renew your US passport, you might be wondering how long it will take. Well, for various reasons the process can take some different times – in this article, we talk about how long does it take to renew a passport normally and how long can it take if you need it faster. Read along and find out. 

The usual U.S. passport renewal service

The usual US passport renewal service consists of preparing all of the right documents, taking a new passport photo, mailing the application, and awaiting results. 

If you already have your documents and picture done – which can take some time – all you need now is to mail the application and wait for your new passport to be mailed to you. 

The typical time to wait for an application to get approved and processed is from 8 to 11 weeks. If you count the mailing time, you can add approximately up to a week. 

How to get your US passport renewed faster?

If you need to get your US passport renewed faster for various reasons, you might want to look into expedited passport renewal that we explain below. 

Selecting the right service for you

There are three reasons as to why you might want to renew your US passport faster:

• Life or death emergency: it applies if you need to travel right now, you will need to make an appointment within three business days of your travel and you will receive the passport as fast as possible if everything goes correctly – in this case, you need to provide proof of why you need to travel now
• International urgent travel plans: If you have an urgent international travel plan that you can provide proof of, you will need to, similarly as above, make an appointment within three days in advance of your departure. The number of appointments, in this case, is rather limited
• No reason: you don’t have to provide a reason to have your passport renewed within 5-7 weeks – you just need to pay an additional fee. In this case, the process goes through mailing services, you don’t have to show up anywhere. 

Renewing a US passport for a child

You cannot renew your child’s passport by mail – you have to show up in person at the nearest passport office with both of the child’s legal guardians. This also requires using a different form – in this case, the DS-11 one. 

Cost of renewing a passport according to the time 

The normal fee for renewing a passport for adults is $110. If you need the expedited service, this is going to cost you an additional $60. The cost of renewing your child’s passport is $135 in total for the passport book, $50 for the passport card, and $150 for both. 

How long does it take to renew a passport summed up

As you can see, depending on the reason, it can take from a few days to 11 weeks to have your passport renewal application processed and approved. If you add mailing time, it can easily last up to 3 months to have the whole thing done. 

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