I Used the Online Passport Renewal Service and Got Mine Back in 6 Days

Taking care of the application was fast and easy

By
Jerri Ledford
Jerri Ledford
Jerri Ledford
Senior News Editor, Fact Checker
  • Western Kentucky University
  • Gulf Coast Community College
Jerri L. Ledford has been writing, editing, and fact-checking tech stories since 1994. Her work has appeared in Computerworld, PC Magazine, Information Today, and many others.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Published on September 19, 2024 02:10PM EDT
Smart & Connected Life

If you qualify, you can renew your passport online and have it back faster than if you do it in person.

I've had a passport most of my life, and the renewal process has always been a pain, at least it was until I tried the new online renewal service.

On Wednesday, the State Department announced that its online passport renewal system was fully operational. The system has been in beta testing for a while, and since my passport was expired, I thought I would give it a try last month. I was pleasantly surprised at how fast and easy the process was.

Closeup on someone holding a new passport book.
Now you can renew your passport online and it get it back faster without having to go to a physical office.

Lifewire / Jerri Ledford

The State Department's website walks you through a process to ensure that you're eligible to renew online, then you fill out the renewal application, upload a picture, and submit the whole package with your application fee ($130 for the passport book). I submitted my application on Friday, August 23, and my new passport was delivered on August 29. It took six days from start to finish. In the past, I've waited over a month, and that was after setting up an appointment that I had to physically go to to get the process started.

"Thanks to increased staffing, technological advancements, and a host of other improvements, the average routine passport is being processed today in roughly one-third the time as at the same point last summer, and well under the advertised six to eight weeks processing times," Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State wrote in the announcement.

Of course, not everyone will get their back in six days. I have a friend who also used the online system about two weeks after I did. Her passport took a little more than 2 weeks to come in. But there was also a holiday weekend in there. The State Department does say it can still take 6-8 weeks for your renewal to be processed, however, so you should keep that in mind if this is the route you decide to take.

You must also meet some requirements to renew your passport online, including: the passport you're renewing must have been issued between 2009 and 2015; you can't make changes to name, gender, date, or place of birth; and you cannot travel in less than eight weeks from the time you submit the application. Additional requirements also apply, but you can check out the full list on the State Department's website.

If you do want to renew online (and why wouldn't you?), you can get started with the process at Travel.State.Gov/renewonline.

Was this page helpful?