I'm renewing my Mom's Passport and I'm not sure if her maiden name documentation is required.

by Karen
(Woodland Hills, CA, USA)

Question: My Mom has a passport that just expired this month, and I am renewing it by mail. Her name has not changed since her original expired passport was issued, so there is no name change documentation required.

However, she did have a maiden name before she married my father, and we did submit copies of her birth certificate, marriage license and divorce decrees etc... the first time we applied for an original passport.

Is any of that required again, or do we just fill in her maiden name on the application, and leave it at that? Or do we even need to fill in that question on the form at all (Question 9)

Answer: Your mother should enter any previous legal name that she has used, including her maiden name. However, no document is necessary.

All that is needed to renew a passport by mail is the completed application form, the previously issued passport, two recent passport photos and payment for the application fee.