Urgent travel: how to get a U.S. passport fast

Can you get an agency appointment?

If you travel internationally soon, you can book an appointment at a passport agency or center once you are within 14 calendar days of your trip, or 28 days if you also need a foreign visa.⁶

To ask about an appointment, call the National Passport Information Center: 1-877-487-2778⁴

You still need the form and documents for your situation: Form DS-82 if you qualify to renew by mail, or Form DS-11 and its documents if not. When you book, ask what proof of your trip to bring.

Not within the window yet? Don't wait for it: apply now with expedited service (see below).

Life-or-death emergencies

You may get an emergency appointment if you must travel abroad within 2 weeks because an immediate family member outside the U.S. has died, is dying or in hospice care, or has a life-threatening illness or injury. Immediate family means parents or legal guardians, children, spouses, siblings and grandparents.⁷

Call the National Passport Information Center to ask for an emergency appointment. On weekends, federal holidays or outside business hours on weekdays, call the after-hours number instead: 202-647-4000⁵

When you call, ask what proof of the emergency and of your trip you need to bring. The official source lists what is accepted.

Expedited or routine service

If your trip is further away than the appointment window, you can apply by mail or at an acceptance facility. Compare the timelines:

• Routine processing: 4–6 weeks³.
• Expedited processing: 2–3 weeks¹.
• Mailing can add up to 2 weeks⁸ each way.
• Your citizenship evidence or old passport comes back up to 4 weeks⁹ after the new passport.

Demand is highest between late winter and summer; October to December is usually less busy.¹⁰

Renewing by mail with expedited service? Write "EXPEDITE" on the outside of the envelope and send it to this address:

National Passport Processing CenterPost Office Box 90955Philadelphia, PA 19190-0955¹¹

Applying in person with Form DS-11? Ask for expedited service at the acceptance facility and include the expedite fee in your payment.

Step by step

Checklist

Before you call or go

Print checklist

• Your travel date, and whether you need a foreign visa
• The right form, filled in: Form DS-82, or Form DS-11 left unsigned
• One passport photo that meets the official rules
• Your current passport, or your citizenship evidence and photo ID for Form DS-11
• Any proof of your trip or of the emergency you were asked to bring
• Payment for the government fees
• "EXPEDITE" on the envelope, if you mail an expedited renewal

Do and don't

Do

• Check your passport's expiration date as soon as you plan a trip.
• Pay for faster return delivery of your book if you mail an expedited application and time is tight.
• Keep the National Passport Information Center number with you.

Don't

• Don't renew online if your trip is close: online renewals cannot be expedited.
• Don't wait for the appointment window if you can still apply with expedited service.
• Don't pay a website that says it will renew online for you. The State Department warns that websites or companies claiming to renew your passport online for you may be fraudulent, even with "Gov" in their name; official sites end in .gov.¹²

Fees

These are government fees, separate from any Passmere fee.

For other fees, including child passports and the passport card, see Passport fees.

By mail or at an acceptance facility, pay the application fee with a check or money order payable to "U.S. Department of State", with the applicant's name and date of birth in the memo. The acceptance fee is paid separately to the facility. Online renewals are paid by credit or debit card.¹⁶ The application fee and the acceptance fee are not refunded, even if no passport is issued. Only the $60 expedite fee can be refunded when expedited service was not delivered on time.¹⁷

After you apply

Check your status on the official site, passportstatus.state.gov¹⁸. The first "In Process" status can take 2 weeks¹⁹ from the day you mail your application. More in Track your passport application.

Frequently asked questions