After launching a pilot program in late 2022, the U.S. Department of State announced Wednesday the online passport renewal system is now fully available to Americans who wish to renew passports online.
"Our online passport renewal system is an important example of how the Department is modernizing government services for the benefit of Americans," Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said in a press release. "By offering this online alternative to the traditional paper application process, the Department is embracing digital transformation to offer the most efficient and convenient passport renewal experience possible."
If you want to renew your passport online, you can do so at travel.state.gov/renewonline, but here are the details you need to know before you renew.
Status of online passport renewal program
Since the initial launch to only 25,000 applicants in 2022, the department has conducted limited pilot programs for additional applicants.
According to a senior State Department official, the agency processed more than 565,000 passports through the pilot program before the agency closed the portal March 8, 2023. Online passport renewal processing resumed nearly a year and a half later with the rollout of an improved beta program following improvements to the consumer experience.
As of Wednesday, the online passport renewal program is now open to all eligible U.S. citizens who want to save time (and a stamp) and renew online.
How to renew your passport online
First, it's important to know that processing times for online passport renewals are the same as those renewed by mail, which is currently six to eight weeks for routine service. Online passport renewal cannot be expedited.
"Thanks to increased staffing, technological advancements, and a host of other improvements, the average routine passport is being processed today in roughly one-third the time as at the same point last summer, and well under the advertised six to eight weeks processing times," Blinken said in the press release.
To renew online, you must meet specific qualifications, including being at least 25 years old. This means children are not eligible for online passport renewal.
Applicants must also renew a passport previously valid for 10 years, issued between 2009 and 2015, and set to expire within one year. Those wishing to change their name, gender, or date or place of birth on their next passport cannot do so online.
Additionally, those with international travel plans within the next eight weeks should not attempt to renew online since processing times for the online renewal service will be the same as those for renewal by mail.
Once you confirm you meet eligibility requirements, you must log in or create an account on the MyTravelGov homepage, where you will click on the “Renew Your Passport” link to begin your application.
Travelers can renew passport books and cards online for the same fees as non-online renewals: $130 for a passport book, $30 for a passport card and $160 for a passport book and card.
“Please note if you have a passport book and want a passport card only, OR if you have a passport card and want a passport book only, you cannot renew online,” according to the State Department.
Once your passport renewal application is pending, your most recent passport will be electronically invalidated.
To complete the application, you must upload a JPEG photo of yourself. Apps such as Passport Booth can help you do so.
Bottom line
The new online passport renewal program follows an executive order by President Joe Biden in December 2021, which directed the agency to implement a new online passport renewal experience that doesn’t require physical documents to be mailed.
Applicants should receive regular email updates about the status of their applications, as non-online applicants do.
If you are eligible to renew your passport online, you can do so by visiting travel.state.gov/renewonline.
Read more:
