Determine which form to submit.
Use form DS-82 to renew your passport if it is intact and has your current name and it was issued within the past 15 years (after you turned 16).
Use forms DS-64 and DS-11 if your passport has been lost or stolen and you want to report and replace it.
Use only form DS-64 if you want to report your loss but not apply for a new passport.
Download the necessary form(s) from the State Department website or obtain them from an acceptance facility or passport agency. Complete the form(s) as instructed.
Gather the required additional documentation.
If you are using form DS-11 to apply in person, you would need to submit Primary Evidence of U.S. Citizenship, which would be one of the following: a previously issued, undamaged U.S. passport; a certified birth certificate issued by the city, county or state; a Consular Report of Birth Abroad or Certification of Birth; a naturalization certificate; or a certificate of citizenship. You also will need to present Primary Evidence of Identification at the time you apply. This could be one of the following: a previously issued, undamaged U.S. passport; a naturalization certificate; a valid driver's license; a current government ID (city, state or federal); or a current military ID (military and dependents).
If you are using form DS-82 to apply by mail, you will need to submit your valid passport. If your current name is different from what was recorded in your most recent U.S. passport, you also need to submit a marriage certificate or court order.
Note that this documentation will be returned to you.
Attach two photos in the space provided on the form. Many neighborhood stores now offer passport photo services.
According to the State Department website, these photos must be
• Identical;
• Color;
• 2 x 2 inches;
• Taken within the past six months, showing your current appearance;
• Full face, front view with a plain white or off-white background;
• Between 1 and 1 3/8 inches from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head;
• Taken in normal street attire. This means that uniforms should not be worn in photographs except religious attire that is worn daily. Do not wear a hat or headgear that obscures the hair or hairline. If you normally wear prescription glasses, a hearing device, wig or similar articles, they should be worn for your picture. Dark glasses or nonprescription glasses with tinted lenses are not acceptable unless you need them for medical reasons (a medical certificate may be required).
Submit fees as outlined on the form(s) being submitted. How and where you are submitting your application will determine the acceptable method(s) of payment.
Submit the completed form(s), documents, photos and fees.
If you are submitting form DS-82 for routine service, mail it to:
National Passport Processing Center
Post Office Box 90155
Philadelphia, PA 19190-0155
If you are submitting form DS-82 for expedited service, mail it to:
National Passport Processing Center
Post Office Box 90955
Philadelphia, PA 19190-0955
If you are submitting form DS-11, the State Department says that you may submit your application in person to one of the following acceptance agents: a clerk of a Federal or State court of record or a judge or clerk of a probate court accepting applications; a designated municipal or county official; a designated postal employee at an authorized post office; or an agent at a Passport Agency (by appointment only) in Boston, Chicago, Aurora CO, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Norwalk, CT, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, or Washington, DC; or a U.S. consular official at a U.S. embassy or consulate, if abroad. To find your nearest acceptance facility, visit the State Department website or contact the National Passport Information Center.
