Get Your Passport Easily

Sun, 17 Jan 2010 14:21:22 EST

Applying for a passport can be aconfusing tangle of forms. Completing them correctly and providing thedocumentation requested can speed up your passport application. It canalso save you several hours of repeat visits, and eliminatefrustration.

First of all, consider whether you can renew your passport bymail. If your current passport is less than 15 years old and isundamaged, you may qualify. However, you must be at least 16 years oldnow and when the original passport was issued. If your current namediffers from your passport, you can still renew by mail but you mustprovide legal proof, such as a marriage license, that documents yournew name.

If it is during the busiest time of year, such as the summer, itcan take up to 3 months to receive your passport. During off-peakperiods, it may only take 4 or 6 weeks. These times can be halved ifyou wish to pay an extra $60 for expedited service. When mailing in anapplication, place the passport forms and your documentation in anenvelope that will protect it from the weather. It is also best to usea carrier that allows you to track your mailing and verify proof ofdelivery.

If you have never had a passport, or if it has been more than 15years since you received one, you have to apply at the issuing site.This is also the case if the age limit of 16 cannot be met. If yourcurrent passport has been damaged, stolen, or lost, you must also applyin person. Also, anyone with a name change he or she cannot documentmust make personal application.

Typically, most people choose to apply at their local post officeor office of the county clerk. There are several official passportagencies located across the country, but these are regionally based andmay be quite distant from your home. Every office will keep differenthours, so it is best to call ahead. Every one, however, will need thesame types of documentation. You must prove you are a citizen of theUnited States by providing an official birth certificate or proof ofnaturalization. Consular reports or notice of birth can serve if youwere born abroad and your parents were citizens of the U.S. If you havean undamaged passport, this will also serve to document citizenship.

You will also be required to prove your identity. A passport canserve for this purpose as well as your proof of citizenship. The mostcommon documentation is a current driver's license or state issuedidentification card. If your license was issued by a state other thanthe one in which you are making your application for passport, you willneed a second form of identification. The agency will accept yoursocial security card, your credit card, or your employer identificationcard. You must also provide a copy of all identification used for theapplication. This cannot be a duplex copy, or copy with dual sidedprinting.

You will need two color photographs of yourself. They must beidentical and no more than 6 months old. Your appearance cannot varysignificantly from the photograph. Each must be 2 x 2, taken against awhite or nearly white background, and be a front view of your fullface. The space between bottom of chin and top of head cannot be lessthan 1 inch or greater than 1-3/8 inches. You should dress in yournormal manner for the picture, and if that includes a wig or glasses,they should be worn in the photograph. However, do not wear a hat orhair trim that hides the hairline.

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Get Your Passport Easily