You'll Be Able to Renew Your Passport Online Starting Next Year — What to Know

Alison Fox
·2 min read

The news follows a successful pilot program allowing travelers to renew their passport virtually.

<p>Mehroz Kapadia</p>

Mehroz Kapadia

Travelers will be able to renew their passports online next year when the State Department reportedly rolls out the option to the general public.

The convenient renewal process, which started as a pilot program in August, will be fully launched for all travelers in early 2023, The New York Times reported.

As part of the online application process, travelers can take and upload their own photos and pay with either a credit or debit card or by using an ACH (Automated Clearing House) payment to transfer funds from their bank account.

Travelers who want to renew online must meet certain requirements, including that they are at least 25 years old, their most recent passport was valid for 10 years, and their old passport was issued between nine years ago and 15 years ago. Those who renew online also can’t currently change their name, gender, date of birth, or place of birth.

The rollout follows an executive order President Joe Biden signed last year requiring the government to design a new online system and comes on the heels of a pilot program in which 25,000 applicants were allowed to renew entirely online. The State Department will follow that pilot with another one later this month, according to the State Department website.

Passport wait times for online renewals are the same as mail-in renewals, which currently average seven to 10 weeks for routine service, or four to six weeks with expedited service, according to the State Department.

Travelers who are renewing their passports must pay $130 for the passport book (the fee increased in December 2021) and an additional $60 if they want to expedite it. Travelers can also pay an extra $18.32 for one to two day delivery.

In addition to its online plans, the State Department is hosting special passport fairs across the country, most of which are geared toward first-time applicants and children.