How to Expedite a Child's Damaged Passport

Your 15-year-old daughter's passport is ruined beyond repair, the victim of her little brother's overzealous artistic exploits. Nearly every page sports a unique scribble design in black permanent marker. The family vacation to the Caribbean is in less than a week, and now you need to replace the damaged passport fast.

The bad news is that children's passports are not renewable by mail, which means basically starting over. The good news is that you still have the damaged passport in your possession, and you can get an expedited minor passport.

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To get the new passport in time, you are going to need the help of both an acceptance agent and a passport expeditor. Your first step is to gather together the supporting documentation again. In lieu of the certified birth certificate, you can use the damaged passport as proof of citizenship, provided the data page is legible.

You will have to prove your relationship to your child by comparing your current ID to an original birth certificate anyway, so bring both. You will need a new full-color passport photo on white or off-white background. Only one photo is required.

The passport application for your child's damaged passport also needs to include proof of immediate travel in order for it to be expedited. Your computer printed airfare tickets or hotel reservation will do for this. You will need two copies, one for the acceptance agent and one for the expeditor.

Additionally, you will need an authorization document giving the expeditor permission to submit your application to the US Department of State on your behalf. You also need to include a signed and dated letter to "The US State Department" explaining how your child's passport was damaged.

Fill out Form DS-11 to apply for a new passport for your child and print two copies, one for the acceptance agent and one for the expeditor. Do not sign the copy for the acceptance agent, which has to be signed in their presence. Bring all the supporting documentation and the damaged passport to an acceptance agent. These facilities are widely available at post offices across the country.

To make sure everything goes smoothly and quickly, both parents should come with the child. If that is not possible, the parent that does go needs to submit notarized consent from the other parent or provide evidence of sole legal custody.

Present the documents to the acceptance agent and let them know you plan to mail them to an expeditor for hand delivery. You will sign the passport application form in front of the agent who will then put all the necessary documentation along with the signed application, authorization letter and payment for fees into a sealed envelope.

The fees will be $80 for the passport book and $60 for government expediting, which should be in one check. A separate fee of $25 is paid to the acceptance agent as an execution fee.

On the outside of the sealed envelope containing the passport application and supporting documents, write the full name of your child, date of birth, the departure date from your itinerary, and your phone number.

Put the sealed envelope together with the second copy of your travel itinerary, the second copy of your signed Letter of Authorization marked COPY, and the second copy of your passport application unsigned, and hand deliver or overnight it to a registered passport expeditor who has a top rating with the Better Business Bureau and a reputation for reliability.

Include a printed copy of your online expedited service application with your travel itinerary, name, address, delivery option, and payment information.

Expedited courier service fees vary depending on how quickly you want to get your child's passport replaced.

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