Applying for a children's passport must be done in person at an acceptance facility such as a post office. Search for an acceptance facility near you at the U.S. State Department's website (http://iafdb.travel.state.gov/). The cost for a children's passport is $80. This includes the $60 application fee and the $20 execution fee.
Download and fill out the DS-11: Application for a U.S. Passport form. Hold off on signing it; you must do this in front of the passport acceptance agent.
Obtain two passport-sized photos of your child. These can be taken at a passport agency, an acceptance facility such as a post office, a copy store and some drug stores. These must be current and in color. Your child should be dressed in everyday clothes.
Ideally, both parents or guardians should be present at the passport office. If only one parent or guardian is able to make it, the other must sign a notarized Statement of Consent.
However, if only one parent has sole custody, proof of this must be established. This can be in the form of a court order, a consular report, or a birth certificate listing you as the sole parent. If the other parent is deceased, you will need to present a death certificate.
All necessary forms are available for download at the U.S. State Department's Applications and Forms page (http://travel.state.gov/passport/forms/forms_847.html).
Submit proof of your child's U.S. citizenship. This can take the form of a previous U.S. passport, a certified birth certificate, a consular report of birth abroad, a naturalization certificate or a certificate of citizenship. Make sure you can part with the copy for a time. The document is needed for processing, which can take up to six weeks. This will be sent back to you.
Parents and guardians must prove their relationship to the child. Accepted documents include a U.S. or foreign birth certificate or Report of Birth Abroad with both parents' names, an adoption decree with both parents' names, or a court order granting custody or guardianship.
Parents or guardians must also submit photocopies of their identification. Previous U.S. passports, driver's licenses, naturalization certificates, as well as government and military IDs, meet this requirement.
