Americans can now renew their passport entirely online, making the process much more convenient and efficient for applicants.
For many applicants, there is no need to mail in an application or visit a passport office in order to renew your passport.
Here's a step-by-step guide on how to apply for your US passport renewal online using the MyTravelGov portal.
Step 1 - Check If You Are Eligible to Apply Online
In order to be able to apply for your passport renewal online, you must meet certain requirements.
These requirements include:
- The passport that you are renewing is or was valid for 10 years
- You are aged 25 or older
- The passport you are renewing was issued over 9 years ago but less than 15 years from the date that you are submitting your application
- Your most recent passport book and/or card expires in one year or less
- You are not trying to change the name, date of birth, gender, or place of birth on your passport
- You will not be traveling internationally for at least 8 weeks from the date that you submit your application
- Your passport is a regular tourist passport, and not a special passport like a diplomatic or official passport
- You live in the United States or one of its territories
- You do not live in a foreign country or have an Army Post Office (APO) or Fleet Post Office (FPO) address
- You physically have your current passport and it is not damaged, lost or stolen
- You can pay for your passport renewal fee with a credit or debit card (will be done online)
- You are able to upload a digital passport photo
For those who do not meet the requirements above, you will need to either mail in your renewal application or visit a passport center for service.
Step 2 - Create Your Online MyTravelGov Account
When you are ready to start your online passport renewal application, you will head to the MyTravelGov website.
Next, click the "Sign In" button in the top right hand corner of the website.
You will select the "Create an account" option and fill in your information accordingly. You will be sent an email to confirm your email address in order to create your account.
Once you click the "Confirm email address" button in your inbox, you will be prompted back to the site to create a password for your account.
Two-factor authentication will also be required in order to get your account created. Popular methods for two-factor authentication include receiving a text message with a code or downloading an authentication application on your mobile device.
Step 3 - Complete Your Personal Information
After your account has been created, you will be prompted to complete your personal information.
This includes entering your basic information including your name and address for your online account.
Step 4 - Start Your Online Passport Renewal Application
Once your account is created and your personal information is entered, you can start your online renewal application by clicking the "Renew Your Passport" button on the homepage screen.
You don't have to finish your application in one sitting. You can start your application and save it to finish at a later date. You have 30 days to complete your application after it is started.
For your online passport renewal application, you will need:
- Your most recent U.S. passport or card
- A digital photograph that meets certain passport photo requirements
- A credit or debit card for your fee payment
The application takes approximately 40 minutes to complete.
Step 5 - Enter Your Passport Information
The online passport renewal process will begin with agreeing with certain eligibility requirements. If you meet all requirements, you will be prompted to enter in your current passport’s information to check further for eligibility.
If the system says you are not eligible to renew online but you believe you should be able to, try again later. However, the application will give you a list of reasons why you aren’t able to renew online.
Make sure that all of your information is entered correctly, including the spelling, capitalization, hyphens, and spacing in your name as it shows on your current passport.
Step 6 - Enter Your Travel Plans
You will be prompted to enter your travel plans for your passport renewal. Remember, those traveling internationally within 8 weeks from your application cannot renew online as only routine service is offered online, which takes roughly 6 to 8 weeks.
If you need your passport faster, you will need to either apply by mail for expedited service for a 3 to 8 week turnaround or make an appointment to review in person if you need your passport in less than 3 weeks.
Step 7 - Upload Your Digital Photograph
You will need to upload a digital photograph for your new passport in .JPEG file format.
Your digital photograph must:
- Be a recent photo taken within the last 6 months
- Be at least 600 x 600 pixels
- Have room around your head and shoulders to allow room for cropping
- Be in color, no black and white photos
- Be at least 54 kilobytes and no more than 10 megabytes
- Be a high resolution photo
- Not be a selfie; the photo should be taken by someone else
- Not be a scanned photo or a photograph taken of a photograph
Step 8 - Sign and Pay Your Passport Fee
In order to complete your online application, you must pay your passport fee using a debit or credit card.
You will click the "Sign and Pay" button, which will take you to pay.gov to complete your passport fee transaction.
After you submit payment details, you will receive email confirmation of your payment pending, and then a second email confirming that your payment was processed.
If your payment does not go through, you will receive a notification email and will need to log into your account and submit payment once again.
Step 9 - Track Your Application Status
One week after you submit your online passport renewal application, you can track its status online.
You can enroll in the Online Passport Status System to receive email updates about when your application is in progress, approved, or mailed to you.
Step 10 - Don't Forget Travel Insurance
If you're planning to travel abroad, don't forget to consider getting travel insurance for your trip.
Travel insurance keeps you protected during your trip internationally, from travel-related hiccups like lost baggage to more serious incidents like covering medical bills for an accident or illness away from home.
Want to learn more? Read on about what travel insurance is and what it covers or reach out to our Customer Success Team for friendly assistance.
For more information on how to apply for your US passport renewal online, visit the Travel.State.Gov website.
