Check when you received your last passport. If you got it when you were over 16 years old and within the last 15 years, and if the expired passport isn't damaged and you received it using your current name, then you can renew your passport by mail.
Fill out a DS-82 form to apply for your new passport. The DS-82 can be downloaded from the U.S. Department of State's website.
Answer all questions and information boxes thoroughly and accurately. Print out the completed form using only a black ink cartridge.
Print out a blank version of the form as an alternate and fill the DS-82 form out by hand. Write legibly and only in black ink. Poor handwriting will result in delays.
Tape or paste your passport photos into the provided photo spaces on the DS-82 form. The photos should be 2-inches by 2-inches, no more than six months old, and show you in full face and in street clothes.
Include a check or money order to pay the fee for your passport renewal. As of 2010, it's $95 for a passport book and card. Just a passport card is $20. Expedited service costs an additional $60.
Include a marriage certificate or court order in the event your name changed since you last had a passport.
Mail all of the above in a padded and secure envelope to
National Passport Center
Post Office Box 90155
Philadelphia, PA 19190-0155.
This address is being used as of 2010. Send the contents via registered mail so it can be tracked in the rare event it gets lost.
Visit a Passport Acceptance Facility to get a passport in person if your expired passport is damaged, stolen or lost; you received it under the age 16; or received the passport more than 15 years ago. The U.S. Department of State website can direct you to the nearest Passport Acceptance Facility based on your zip code.
Fill out a DS-11 form when applying in person. The information required here is the same as in the DS-82, only you'll be turning it in to the Acceptance Facility rather than mailing it.
Prove you're a U.S. citizen by presenting your birth certificate or one of any other accepted documents indicating your identity. Another item would be a driver's license or government or military I.D.
Make one photocopy of your I.D. document before visiting the Acceptance Facility. The original and the copy will be asked for at the desk when an employee helps you.
Present two photos of yourself with same applicable rules as with the DS-82. Pay the fee for the passport. The rates are the same in person as they are by mail.
