How to Get a U.S. Passport

Getting a first U.S. passport or renewing one from New Hampshire, step by step: whether you can renew by mail, what to bring to a post office, a child's passport, and what to do if you travel soon.

Checked against its sources October 25, 2026.

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At a Glance

A U.S. passport comes from the U.S. Department of State, not from New Hampshire. If it is your first passport, if you are under 16, or if you cannot renew, you apply in person on Form DS-11 at an acceptance facility, such as a post office, by appointment. Bring proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a certified birth certificate, a photo ID, a photocopy of each, and a photo. If your last passport was issued for 10 years, within the last 15 years, you can usually renew by mail or online instead.

  1. Have you had a U.S. passport issued for 10 years, within the last 15 years?

    • YesYou can usually renew by mail or online. You cannot renew at a post office.
    • No, or it is for a child under 16Apply in person on Form DS-11, at a post office or another acceptance facility.
  2. Applying in person? Gather proof of citizenship, a photo ID, a photocopy of each, and a photo.
  3. Make an appointment, and sign the form only when the agent asks you to.
  4. Pay two fees there: one to the Department of State, one to the facility.

Step by Step

Renewing an adult passport

  1. Check whether you can renew instead

    You can renew by mail only if your most recent passport was issued for 10 years, when you were 16 or older; it was issued no more than 15 years ago; it has never been reported lost or stolen; it is undamaged, apart from normal wear; it was issued in your current name, or you can send a document such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree or court order showing your name change; and you can send it in with your application.

    You can renew online instead if that passport was valid for 10 years and expires within a year or expired less than 5 years ago; you are 25 or older; you are not changing your name or sex; you are not traveling for at least 6 weeks, since an online renewal cannot be expedited; you are in the United States when you apply; and you have the passport, undamaged. You pay by card, and you keep the old passport, which is canceled once you apply.

    A renewal is never done in person at a post office. If you cannot renew, apply in person as a first-time applicant would, as the steps below describe.

    Renew by mail (State Department)Renew online (State Department)

  2. Renew by mail

    • Fill out Form DS-82 with the State Department’s Form Filler, print it on single-sided paper, and sign and date it before you mail it.
    • Send your most recent passport. It comes back to you in a separate mailing.
    • If your name has changed, send a certified copy of the legal document that changed it, such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree or court order. It comes back to you too.
    • Staple one photo to the application, with four staples in the corners, and do not bend it.
    • Pay by personal check or money order payable to the U.S. Department of State, with the applicant’s full name and date of birth on the front. Do not send cash. The fee depends on whether you renew a book, a card or both; the page below lists it.

    Mail it through the U.S. Postal Service. From New Hampshire, routine service goes to National Passport Processing Center, Post Office Box 90155, Philadelphia, PA 19190-0155. For expedited service, for an extra fee, write “EXPEDITE” on the envelope and mail it to National Passport Processing Center, Post Office Box 90955, Philadelphia, PA 19190-0955. A post office should not charge you its facility fee or review a renewal form.

    Renew by mail (State Department)

Applying in person

  1. Fill out Form DS-11, and do not sign it yet

    A first passport, a passport for a child under 16, and one for anyone who cannot renew are applied for in person. Fill out Form DS-11 with the State Department’s form filler and print it on one side of the paper, but do not sign it: you sign it in front of the acceptance agent, under oath.

    Apply for an adult passport (State Department)

  2. Gather your documents and a photo

    • Proof of U.S. citizenship. If you were born in the United States, this is generally a certified birth certificate showing your full name, the date and place of your birth and your parents’ full names, with the registrar’s signature and seal. If you were born in New Hampshire, your town or city clerk can issue one (the guide linked at the end of this page says how). It must be on paper: a digital or mobile birth certificate is not accepted. A full-validity U.S. passport, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, or a certificate of naturalization or citizenship also proves it.
    • A photo ID, such as a driver’s license. If it is from another state, bring a second photo ID.
    • A photocopy of the front and back of both the citizenship document and the ID, on one side of plain letter-size paper.
    • A photo that meets the State Department’s rules. Do not staple it to the form. Many post offices take one for a fee.

    No birth certificate that meets the rules? The questions below say what the State Department accepts instead.

  3. Make an appointment and apply

    Thousands of post offices accept first-time applications, by appointment: book online, at a post office’s self-service kiosk, or at the counter. Some offer limited walk-in hours. Libraries, local government offices and the clerks of some courts accept applications too; ask the facility whether you need an appointment.

    You pay two separate fees. The State Department’s fee goes in with your application, by check or money order payable to “U.S. Department of State”, with your name and date of birth in the memo line, not by card. The facility’s own acceptance fee is paid there, and a post office takes cards. The State Department’s adult passport page lists the current amounts.

    Book at a post office (USPS)Fees and how to apply (State Department)

  4. A passport for a child under 16

    The child goes to the appointment, with both parents or guardians. A child’s passport cannot be renewed: you apply in person each time. Bring the child’s proof of citizenship, which, if it is a U.S. birth certificate, also shows who the parents are, and each parent’s photo ID, with photocopies.

    If one parent cannot come, that parent signs the Statement of Consent, Form DS-3053, before a notary, and you bring it, with a photocopy of the ID they showed the notary, within 90 days of its signing.

    A child under 16 (State Department)

Either way

  1. If you travel soon

    Routine processing takes 4 to 6 weeks, and expedited service, for an extra fee, 2 to 3 weeks. Neither counts the mail, which can add up to 2 weeks each way; you can pay for faster shipping both ways. The State Department’s page has the current times.

    If you travel abroad in less than 3 weeks, make an appointment at a passport agency or center once you are within 14 days of your trip, or 28 days if you need a foreign visa. New Hampshire has one: the National Passport Center in Portsmouth. Appointments are free, through the State Department’s online appointment system; if you have already applied, call 1-877-487-2778. Anyone who asks you to pay for an appointment is not the State Department.

    Get your passport fast (State Department)Make an appointment at a passport agency

Common Questions

Are other websites that offer to renew my passport safe?

Renew only at the State Department’s own site: others that offer to do it for you charge extra and put your information at risk.

What if I have no birth certificate that meets the rules?

If you have no birth certificate that meets the rules, the State Department accepts other early records of your birth instead, such as hospital, baptismal, medical or school records. Its adult passport page says what to bring.

Can unpaid child support or taxes stop an application?

Unpaid child support over the State Department’s limit, or seriously delinquent federal tax debt, will delay or stop an application: settle it first.

What if I alone have custody of my child?

Bring proof of it instead of the other parent’s consent, such as a court order granting you sole custody, a birth certificate or adoption decree naming only you, or the other parent’s death certificate.

How long is a passport good for?

A passport issued to someone under 16 is valid for 5 years; one issued at 16 or older, for 10.

See Also

Where This Comes From