How To Apply For Passports For Minors

by erin on November 5, 2010

Just as every U. S. adult must present a valid passport for international air t ravel, so must each child have their own passport. At one time, children under a certain age could travel on their parent’s passport but that law has changed and now each must have their own. The requirements for passports for minors are similar to that of getting an adult passport except for a couple of major particulars to which careful attention must be paid.

Every child under the age of 16 must apply in person with the application for a new passport, DS -11. DS-11 is the standard application for a new passport. The form DS-11 should be filled out but should not be signed until the agent requests it.

Getting the passport for any child requires submitting proof of citizenship in the form of a certified birth certificate, a birth abroad record, naturalization certification or citizenship certificate. If none of these documents are available, a combination of secondary documents might be presented but one secondary document alone is not sufficient in most instances.

Both parents present must submit identification as well as proof of their relationship to the child. Government issued identification may be sufficient to prove who they are but they must also be listed as parents on one of the documents submitted to identify the child. This measure has been implemented in order to provide increased protection for children.

Requirements for passports for minors aged 16 and 17 vary slightly but in a couple of significant ways. The minors aged 16 and 17 must appear to apply in person and they must either present photo ID or have a parent present their photo ID if they don’t have their own. A passport application for a minor 16 or 17 can be presented by the minor with themselves as the applicant, unlike younger persons who require the presence of both parents for an application.

There are some limited circumstances where a minor may not require a US passport. A child traveling on a cruise ship with a closed circuit route, that is one that leaves from a US port and visits only a port in the Western Hemisphere, may not require a passport. However, in order to disembark at the port of call, the foreign country may require one.

In addition, some changes were made as of June 2009 and groups of children from the US and Canada who are traveling with a school, religious or sports organization may not require a passport for travel to countries adjacent to their own. For sea or land travel they may require only a birth certificate or other documentation. International air travel though will still require the passport.

When applying for a child’s passport, the wait times are similar to that of an adult’s. Usually it requires four to six weeks for a passport submitted through regular channels to arrive. Expedited passports require a more substantial fee and will usually arrive in two to four weeks. To receive the documents sooner for more urgent travel plans, a US passport agency office or website will be able to issue the passport within 24 hours or if this is not possible, a rush passport service can be used.

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