Important Due to Covid-19, processing times for passports are taking longer than normal for both standard and expedited services.

Can I keep the visa pages from my current passport?

by Lauren
(Lombard, IL USA)

Question: I have visa stamps from really cool countries, and I would hate to lose them when I have to mail in my old passport. I need a new passport because I got married. Is there anything I can do to keep them?


Answer: If you want to know if you can remove the visa pages in your passport before mailing in it, the answer is "No".

Your old passport will be returned to you after you application is processed. Usually, the new passport and the old passport are mailed separately so they may not arrive on the same day.

For greater security, you are encouraged to use a secure means of packaging, such as a Tyvek envelope. It is also recommended that you mail your passport application and any personal documents using a traceable delivery method. For complete instructions, click the link below.

Apply for Passport Name Change

If you still feel uncomfortable in mailing your old passport, then you can apply for a new passport using Form DS-11. This is the form that is used by those who either need to obtain a first-time passport or who are unable to submit their old passport.

Using form DS-11 does require you appear before an authorized passport agent. For more information, click the link below.

How to Get a New Passport

For a list of passport application acceptance facilities where you can submit the form in Illinois, click the link below.

Illinois Passport Offices

If you need to get the name changed or get a new passport fast (less than two weeks), you can apply at the regional agency or through a professional expediter. For details, click the links below.

Chicago Passport Agency

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Comments for Can I keep the visa pages from my current passport?

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Retired
by: Anonymous

Cool places visited, photo that visa page from your old passport and paste them among the photos you saved from the trip

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Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Passport Name Change FAQ.

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Top 5 Questions About Expedited Passport Couriers

UPDATE: Mailing delays and high demand are impacting passport processing. The Department of State's processing times begin when applications are received at a passport agency or center and not when you mail them or apply at a local acceptance facility.

Standard service may take between 10 and 13 weeks. This timeframe does not include delivery time. Mailing times vary across the country.

Expedited service takes from 7 to 9 weeks excluding mailing times on the front and back end. Current mailing delays are significant. Requesting 1-2-day mailing service is recommended.

Regional passport agencies are offering two types of appointments: Life-of-Death Emergency Service and Urgent Travel Service.

Life-or-death emergencies are serious illnesses, injuries, or deaths in your immediate family (parent, legal guardian, child, spouse, sibling, and grandparent) that require you to travel outside the United States within 3 business days.

If you need to travel due to a qualified life-or-death emergency, please call the National Passport Information Center for an appointment.

For Urgent Travel Service, you need to call 14 days before your scheduled international travel or 28 days if you also need to secure a foreign visa.

If you need to travel urgently for reasons other than a life-or-death emergency, please call the NPIC.

A registered expedited passport courier can often assist in obtaining a passport as quickly as the same day. You can learn more about this service here.

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