How to Replace a Damaged Passport

Damaged passports are automatically invalidated and can no longer be used for international travel. The definition of what actually constitutes a damaged passport is not easy to acertain. Even Federal Regulations do not offer a lot of help on this subject.

In the section on passport invalidity, the regular states, "A United States passport is invalid as soon as:

"The passport has been materially changed in physical appearance or composition, or contains a damaged, defective or otherwise nonfunctioning chip, or includes unauthorized changes, obliterations, entries or photographs, or has observable wear or tear that renders it unfit for use as a travel document, and the Department either takes possession of the passport or sends a written notice to the bearer."

The most difficult description to understand is "observable wear and tear". The word "observable" is relative and open to the personal judgment of the agent who examines your passport. Are dog-earred pages sufficient wear and tear to render the passport unusable? What if you accidentally washed a passport resulting in faded pages or a loose binding? What if the gold on the emblem has been rubbed off?

And how are you to know if the RFID chip is "damaged, defective or otherwise nonfunctioning" until it is scanned at the airport?

Due to the relative nature of the regulation, we always encourage American citizens to replace a damaged passport if they have any doubt at all about its usability. Yes, you will have to pay the fees to get a new passport but cancelling an international trip at the last minute can be a lot more expensive.

If your passport has been damaged and you want to apply for a replacement, then you can do this by following the same steps that are required in order to obtain a new passport. The only additional step is you have to submit the damaged passport along with the application form and supporting documents. For security reasons, damaged passports may be retained.

Replace a Damaged Passport Fast

The application to replace a damaged passport using standard service takes 4-6 weeks to process. You can accelerate the process by requesting expedited service. The replacement passport should be delivered to you within 2-3 weeks. What if you need a new travel document much quicker?

Regional passport agencies can process same day passport applications for citizens of the United States that have urgent travel plans. There are two ways to get this done. One, visit the regional agency yourself. Two, have a qualified passport expediter request the replacement for you. Choose which is best for your situation and click the appropriate link below.

Replace Passport at Regional Passport Agency | Expedite Damaged Passport Replacement