Guidelines For Correcting Or Changing Information in the US Passport

A passport is a personal identification accepted internationally. Therefore, after receiving your newly acquired passport or renewed passport, it is a must that you carefully look into the details. Make sure the information you provided are written correctly in your document.

The US Department of State is the agency that handles and provides passports to its citizenry. Any correction or changes in this document must undergo the guidelines and requirements they post. There are different and specific methods that must be followed in order to change or correct any information stated in the passport.

Correcting a typographical error or wrong information in the passport

Correcting a typo or any wrong information in the passport is possible. You must first fill-up the Form DS-5504 legibly in black ink and make sure all the information needed is correct and complete. Sign and put a date on the first page of the form. Submission of the form will vary.

If your passport was issued less than 90 days, mail the Form DS-5504 together with your US passport and any document that will support your request to the address stated in the form. If the passport was issued for more than 90 days already, submit the Form DS-5504 together with the US passport, documents supporting your request and two new passport photos. They offer this service free of charge.

Changing the Name

A change of name can be categorized into three: name change because of an error, name change if you are unable to support with documents your request and name change for eligible applicants. If you will just change the name because of an error, follow the instruction for correcting the typographical error.

If you are going to change your name and you cannot support your request through any court order or marriage certification, submit the following requirements in person at a Passport agency or Acceptance Facility: US passport, filled-up Form DS-11, 3 or more public documents that will show the use of your assumed name for 5 or more years and two recent colored photos. Certain fees will be charged to you.

If you changed your name due to a court order or marriage and the passport was issued for not more than 1 year, just submit through mail the following documents: US passport, filled-up Form DS-5504, a certified true copy of the court order or the marriage certificate and two recent photos. No fee will be charged on you.

If your change of name is due to a court order or marriage and you passport was issued for more than a year ago, just mail the following documents to the address provided on the Form DS-82: US passport, filled-up Form DS-82, a certified true copy of the court order or the marriage certificate and two recent colored photos. Inquire about the necessary charges.

Replacing your Limited US Passport

In replacing your limited passport book, two methods are possible. If your passport was issued not less than a year, just mail the following documents to the address provided by Form DS-5504: US passport, filled-up Form DS-5504, other documents specified by the passport services and two recent colored photos. No fee will be charged to you.

If your passport was issued for more than a year, mail the following documents to the address provided by Form DS-82: US passport, filled-up Form DS-82, certified copy of court order or marriage certificate and two recent colored photos. You will be charged a processing fee.

Additional Visa Pages

When your passport has only 2 to 4 visa pages left, mail the following documents to the address provided by Form DS-4085: US passport, and filled-up Form DS-4085. If you are requesting for a new passport book, submit a signed, written request and mail it with Form DS-82 or submit it in person by following the instruction provided by Form DS-11. There are no fees charged for this request.

The Basics of Changing Your Name on Your Passport

If you've had your name changed because of a court order or if you're a woman who has recently been married, then you will need to have a passport name change. What is a passport name change? This is basically just a procedure you need to go through to have the name in your passport changed from your former to your new one. You have several options of going about this, which will depend on the date when your passport was issued, and the presence of legal documents that prove your name change. We'll talk about them more in this article.

Before anything else, you need to check when your passport was issued. The reason for this is that people whose passports we issued within one year follow a different procedure from those whose passports are more than a year old. To check when your passport was issued, all you need to do is look for it in your passport which is indicated along with your personal information.

Now, onto the first option. If your passport was issued within one year, here are the requirements you need to fulfill: present your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, as well as the legal documents that prove your name change. These will either be a court order or a marriage certificate, depending on what's applicable to you. Then finally, you also have to accomplish Form DS-5504, the form you fill in when applying for a passport name change.

You won't have to pay any fees when going through this type of application. This is unless you choose to have your application expedited, which does come with a fee. An expedited passport application is the option you need if you want to cut the processing time of your passport from four to six weeks to just two to three.

Meanwhile, if your passport was issued more than a year ago, then you will submit a slightly different set of documents. In this procedure, you will submit: your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, documents that prove your name change (i.e. your marriage contract or a court order). These are basically the same documents you submit in the previous option.

However, instead of the DS-5504, you will submit form DS-82. This is the form that you use when applying for a passport application by mail. Also, you will need to pay the applicable fees to have your passport processed.

There are times when those applying for a passport name change don't have the legal documents to prove it. If you're in a similar situation, you'll need to submit a different set of requirements: your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, the completed Form DS-11, and pay the applicable fees. In place of the legal document normally required, you will need to submit three public records with your date and place of birth and that indicates the exclusive use of your new name for at least five years. You will then have to submit these requirements in person once you accomplish them.