Form PPTC 054 Adult Passport Renewal: Sections, Photos, and Submission

Form PPTC 054 is the simplified adult passport renewal application for Canadian citizens aged sixteen or older who already hold or recently held an adult passport, whose name and sex identifier are unchanged, and who are applying from within Canada or the United States. You can download it from the Government of Canada’s passport forms page, complete it in capital letters using black or dark blue ink, and submit it in person, by mail, or through the online renewal portal.¹ It skips the guarantor, proof of citizenship, and separate identity documents required by the general application (PPTC 153), because the Passport Program verifies you against the record from your last passport.

Whether You Can Use PPTC 054

You qualify only if all of the following are true: you’re sixteen or older, you already hold or recently held an adult Canadian passport, your legal name hasn’t changed since it was issued, you are not requesting a different sex identifier, and you can provide that passport’s number, issue date, and expiry date. You must also be applying from Canada or the United States. Canadians elsewhere use different forms available through the nearest embassy or consulate.²

Several common situations push you off PPTC 054 and onto PPTC 153 (the Adult General Passport Application) instead:

You’ve never held a Canadian adult passport, including anyone whose last passport was issued before they turned sixteen.
Your legal name has changed through marriage, divorce, or a court order. You’ll need PPTC 153 plus a supporting document such as a marriage certificate or legal name change certificate.
You want a different sex identifier (F, M, or X) from what appeared on your previous passport.
Your previous passport was lost or stolen and you cannot supply its number, issue date, and expiry date. In that case you’ll need PPTC 153 along with the Declaration Concerning a Lost, Stolen, Inaccessible, Damaged or Found Canadian Travel Document (PPTC 203).

PPTC 153 also requires a guarantor, original proof of Canadian citizenship, and government-issued photo identification. If you’re unsure which form applies, run through the eligibility checker on the forms page before you fill out anything, because an application submitted on the wrong form gets returned with your fee and documents.¹

What to Gather Before You Start

The document checklist for PPTC 054 is short. Have these ready:

Your most recent Canadian passport. You’ll copy its number, issue date, and expiry date onto the form and submit the physical passport with your application. You can ask for it back by ticking the appropriate box.
Two identical passport photos taken within the last six months by a commercial photographer. They must be 50 mm wide by 70 mm high, show a neutral expression with your mouth closed, and be shot against a plain white or light-coloured background.³
Two references. Each must be eighteen or older and have known you for at least two years. They cannot be members of your immediate or extended family, your spouse, or your common-law partner.⁴
An emergency contact. Section 6 is mandatory. You need a full name, address, and phone number.
Two years of address and employment history with no gaps. Dates, employers or schools, addresses, and phone numbers going back twenty-four months.

No guarantor, citizenship document, or separate ID is needed.

Filling Out Each Section

Print in capital letters using black or dark blue ink. Every detail in Section 1 must match your previous passport exactly. A mismatch between what you write and what’s in the system gets the application rejected and mailed back.²

Section 1: Personal Information

Enter your surname and given names as they appear on your most recent passport. List any former surnames, including your surname at birth if different. Provide your date of birth, place of birth (city, province or state, country), sex as shown on your previous passport, natural eye colour, and height. Add your current home address, mailing address if different, email, and phone numbers. Enter your anticipated travel date. Sign and date at the bottom of the section.

Section 2: Most Recent Canadian Passport

Copy the passport number, date of issue, and date of expiry from your previous passport. If that passport is still valid for more than twelve months from the day you submit, include a written explanation of why you’re renewing early. Indicate whether you want the old passport returned to you.

Section 3: Period of Validity

Choose either a five-year or ten-year passport. The ten-year option costs more upfront but doubles the interval before you have to renew again.

Section 4: Additional Personal Information

List every address where you’ve lived during the past two years, with dates. Then list every employer or school for the same period, including addresses and phone numbers. Gaps in either timeline often trigger follow-up requests from the Passport Program, which delays processing. If you were unemployed or between addresses for a stretch, note that explicitly rather than leaving it blank.

Section 5: References

For each reference, provide surname, given name, relationship, address, phone number, email, and the number of years they’ve known you. Both should be reachable, because the Passport Program may call them.

Section 6: Emergency Contact

Fill in the name, relationship, phone numbers, email, and address of someone who can be reached in an emergency while you’re travelling. Sign and date again at the bottom.

Section D: Credit Card Information (Mail-in Only)

If you’re mailing your application, complete the credit card authorization with card type, number, expiry date, and cardholder signature. This section is not needed for in-person submissions, where you can pay by other methods.

Photo Rules That Get Applications Rejected

Both photos must be identical, unaltered, and produced from a single negative or electronic image file. A commercial photographer or studio must take them. Selfies and home printouts are rejected. Beyond the 50 mm by 70 mm size, the photos need to show your full face from chin to crown, with eyes open and clearly visible, looking straight at the camera.⁵

The background must be plain white or light-coloured, with enough contrast between your face, clothing, and the backdrop. One photo must have the photographer’s name, studio address, and the date the photo was taken printed on the back. Photos older than six months at the time you submit will be rejected.³

Fees

As of March 31, 2026, passport fees increased. Current amounts for the simplified renewal:

From within Canada: CAN$122.50 for a five-year passport or CAN$163.50 for a ten-year passport.
From the United States: CAN$194.25 for a five-year passport or CAN$266.25 for a ten-year passport.⁶

If you’re replacing a passport you reported lost or stolen and it was still valid when it went missing, an additional CAN$45 administrative fee applies on top of the new passport cost.⁷

In person, you can pay by credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or American Express), prepaid card, debit card, or certified cheque or money order in Canadian funds for the exact amount. By mail, the options are the same except debit cards. Complete the credit card authorization section on the form, or enclose a certified cheque or money order payable to the Receiver General for Canada. Cash and personal cheques are not accepted, and enclosing them will get your entire application returned.⁸

How to Submit

In Person

You can submit at any Service Canada Centre or passport office that offers passport services. Staff review your originals on the spot and hand them back before you leave. In-person submission is also the only way to access express and urgent processing.⁹

By Mail

Mail applications go to different addresses depending on the delivery method:

Canada Post (non-courier): Passport Program, Gatineau QC K1A 0G3, Canada.
Courier: Passport Program, 22 de Varennes Street, Gatineau QC J8T 8R1, Canada.¹⁰

Use a traceable shipping method when sending original documents like your previous passport. If they go missing in transit, replacement is on you.

From the United States

Canadian citizens in the US mail their applications to the same Gatineau address or submit them at the nearest Canadian embassy or consulate. Processing time from the US is twenty business days, not counting mailing time. Passports are printed in Canada, so factor in delivery in both directions.¹¹

Online

The Passport Program offers online renewal through the IRCC portal. If you renew online, you can check your application status in real time inside the portal instead of using the standard status tool.¹²

Processing Times and Faster Options

Standard processing depends on how and where you submit:

In person at a passport office or 10-day Service Canada Centre: 10 business days.
In person at a regular Service Canada Centre, by mail, or online: 20 business days.
From the United States by mail: 20 business days, plus mailing time in both directions.¹¹

Two faster options are available in person only:

Express pickup: 2 to 9 business days, depending on location. Some centres, including Kelowna, Pointe-Claire, and Charlottetown, take a minimum of 3 to 4 business days.
Urgent pickup: by the end of the next business day.¹³

Both carry additional fees and may require proof of travel. Seasonal demand, particularly in spring and early summer, can push actual times beyond the standards above.

Tracking Your Application

Once your file is in the system, track it through the Government of Canada’s online status tool, which shows whether the application is being processed, whether your passport has been printed, and whether it has been mailed. If you applied through the IRCC portal, check inside the portal instead.¹²

If the Passport Program asks for additional information or documents, respond quickly. You have thirty calendar days to provide what they’ve requested. After that, your file may be closed and you’d need to start over.²

If the Previous Passport Was Lost, Stolen, or Damaged

You can still use PPTC 054 for the renewal if you have the previous passport’s number, issue date, and expiry date. You’ll also need to complete PPTC 203, the Declaration Concerning a Lost, Stolen, Inaccessible, Damaged or Found Canadian Travel Document, which asks when, where, and how the passport went missing or was damaged.¹

If the lost passport was still valid when it disappeared, expect the CAN$45 administrative surcharge on top of the renewal fee. If you can’t provide the previous passport’s details at all, PPTC 054 won’t work, and you’ll need PPTC 153 with a guarantor and proof of citizenship.²

What False Statements Cost You

The warning on the form is direct. A false or misleading statement on the application or supporting documents can result in refusal, revocation of a currently valid passport, denial of passport services for a period, and criminal prosecution. Under Section 57 of the Criminal Code, knowingly making a false statement to obtain a passport is an indictable offence carrying up to two years’ imprisonment, and it can also be prosecuted as a summary conviction offence.¹⁴ The Passport Program checks the entries on PPTC 054 against the record from your previous passport, so accuracy in Sections 1 and 2 is not optional.

1
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Find a Passport or Travel Document Form
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Government of Canada. PPTC 054 E – Adult Simplified Renewal Passport Application
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Passport Photo Requirements
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Government of Canada. Apply for a New Adult Passport in Canada
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Government of Canada. Passport Photo Specifications
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Passport and Travel Document Fee Changes
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Pay Your Passport Fee – Canadians in the United States
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Pay Your Passport Fee in Canada
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Get the Form and Submit Your Passport Renewal in Canada
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Contact the Passport Program
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Check Our Service Standards – Canadian Passports and Other Travel Documents
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. How to Check the Status of Your Passport Application
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Get Urgent, Express or Emergency Weekend Passport Services
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Government of Canada. Criminal Code – Forgery of or Uttering Forged Passport