Wednesday, June 30, 2010

New Passport Fees - Effective July 13, 2010

Need to renew or apply for a U.S. passport?  Better get your paperwork mailed within the next two weeks!

New passport fees for the U.S. Passport Book, the U.S. Passport Card and other passport services will be in effect on Tuesday, July 13, 2010.  The most significant changes are increases in standard adult passport fees from $75 to $110 and standard minor passport fees from $60 to $80.  Passport cards, which are used mainly by those people who frequently drive across the border, will increase in cost from $20 to $30 ($15 for minors). 

If you renew by mail, there is no other charge.  If you need to submit the application for a new passport, the Acceptance Fee is $25, made payble to the Acceptance Facility you use.

The Department of State expediting fees remain at $60 per application.  However, they will begin charging $82 for adding extra pages to existing passport, plus applicable State Department $60 expediting fees.  In the past, the Department provided extra pages in a customer's passport, at no charge.  The Department found that the cost of the page themselves, having the pages placed in the book in a secure manner by trained personnel, and completing the required security checks results in a cost to the U.S. Government more than $82 per passport book, therefore, the Department will charge the same for previously free service.