Yes, you can have a U.S. passport mailed to a different address than the one where you live. On a new application, you write the alternate address on the mailing address lines of Form DS-11 and use the “In Care Of” line for the name of the person receiving it. If you’ve already submitted your application and need to change the mailing address before the passport ships, you call the National Passport Information Center. There’s no separate form and no fee for the change itself.
Using the “In Care Of” Line on Your Application
Form DS-11, used for new passports and most replacements, has a mailing address section with two lines. Line 1 takes the street address, rural route, or P.O. Box where you want the passport delivered. Line 2 is the “In Care Of” line, where you write the name of the person who actually lives at that address if it isn’t you.1U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport – Form DS-11
So if you want the passport sent to a relative’s house in another state while you travel for work, you put the relative’s street address on Line 1 and “In Care Of — [their name]” on Line 2. That name lets the carrier match the envelope to the mailbox even though the passport itself is in your name. For a minor child’s application, the “In Care Of” line must name the parent or the adult registered to receive mail at that address.1U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport – Form DS-11
Changing the Address After You’ve Applied
If your mailing address changes after you submit the application but before the passport arrives, call the National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778 (TTY 1-888-874-7793). Representatives take calls Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Eastern, and Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern.2U.S. Department of State. Contact U.S. Passports A phone call is the whole process. No form, no supporting documents.
You only need to do this while the application is pending. Once the passport is in your hands, moving doesn’t require any update: the document doesn’t carry your mailing address, so an address change afterward has no effect on it.3U.S. Department of State. Change or Correct a Passport
What Kind of Address Is Allowed
The mailing address rules are more flexible than most people expect, but they do have limits.
- P.O. Boxes are accepted. Both DS-11 and DS-5504 list “P.O. Box” as a valid mailing address format.1U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport – Form DS-11
- Private addresses in Canada are accepted.4U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport – Form DS-5504
- No other foreign addresses. Passports will not be mailed to a private address outside the United States or Canada. Citizens living elsewhere apply through a U.S. embassy or consulate and pick the passport up locally.4U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport – Form DS-5504
Passport books go out by trackable mail, so you can watch the shipment. Passport cards are sent by First Class Mail without tracking. If you applied for both a book and a card and included citizenship documents like a birth certificate, expect up to three separate envelopes.5U.S. Department of State. Renew Your Passport by Mail
If the Passport Never Shows Up
If more than two weeks have passed since the passport was mailed and it hasn’t arrived, call the National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778.6U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions About Passport Services The center can start a trace on the missing document.
Timing matters here. The State Department will send you Form DS-86, a signed statement that you never received the passport. It has to be completed within 120 days of the passport’s issue date. Miss that window and the no-cost replacement route closes: you’ll have to reapply on a new DS-11 and pay full fees.6U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions About Passport Services For an adult (age 16 or older), that’s $130 for the application plus a $35 acceptance facility fee, or $165 total for a book.7U.S. Department of State. Passport Fees
Wrong Address Versus False Address
An honest mistake on the mailing address is fixed by a phone call to the National Passport Information Center. Do it as soon as you notice. Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 1542 targets willful false statements in a passport application, not typos or address changes you correct.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1542 – False Statement in Application and Use of Passport Deliberately putting false information on the form is a separate matter and a serious one, but simply asking to route your passport to a different real address is not what the statute is about.