Wanderlust World Wanderlust World An adult applying for a U.S. passport must sign the passport himself. He should not sign the application until instructed by a passport acceptance agent to do so.
Teenagers under 16 years of age must sign a passport application after being instructed to do so by a passport agent. Both parents need to be present when the child signs, unless a notarized consent is presented from one parent or one parent has legal custody and supporting documentation.
An adult who applies for a passport for a child who cannot write must print the child's name in the "Signature" box of the application. The parent must then sign his name on the same line and write his or her relationship to the child in parentheses.
The passport acceptance agent signs the passport application after collecting necessary documentation and after the applicant and parents (if necessary) have signed the application.
In cases where a notarized consent or legal custody is not involved, the benefit of having both parents present when a child signs a passport application is that it prevents one parent from obtaining a passport for the child without the other parent's knowledge.