Expired Passport - How to Renew an Expired Passport

Have an expired passport and want to know how to renew it or, even if, you can apply for a passport renewal?

U.S. passports are valid for 10 years if issued to an adult and 5 years if issued to a minor. For example, my most recent passport was issued on October 4, 2006. Therefore, the expiration date is October 3, 2016. The State Department Passport Services recommends that U.S. citizens begin the renewal process approximately nine months before the passport’s expiration date.

If you let the expiration date slip by and you have a trip abroad coming up, then you need to get your passport renewed. You cannot travel with an expired passport. You travel document must be valid in order for you to enter any foreign country. And no country will issue you a travel visa without a current, valid passport.

How long after a passport expires can you apply for renewal by mail? One of the requirements in order to renew your passport by mail is that your most recent passport had to have been issued within the last 15 years. That means that you can renew an expired passport up to 5 years after it expires.

Applying for a passport renewal by mail is certainly a lot easier than applying for a new one. You don’t need as many documents and you don’t have to appear at a passport application acceptance facility. But there are other requirements that you need to be meet and precautions you need to take.

For more information, visit how to renew an expired passport.

U.S. Passport Top