Getting a U.S. passport is not hard for most adults: you fill out Form DS-11, bring a certified birth certificate and photo ID to a post office or other acceptance facility, pay $165, and wait four to six weeks. How hard it is to get a passport in your specific case depends on three things: whether you have your citizenship documents, whether your photo and forms are correct on the first try, and whether you have any legal issues, such as child support arrears or serious tax debt, that trigger an automatic denial.
The Straightforward Path
First-time applicants use Form DS-11 and must apply in person at an authorized acceptance facility, typically a post office, clerk of court, or public library.1USAGov. Apply for a New Adult Passport Don’t sign the form before you arrive; the acceptance agent has to witness your signature.
You bring three things: proof of citizenship, a photo ID, and a passport photo. A certified birth certificate is the standard citizenship document, and it must show your full name, date and place of birth, your parents’ names, the registrar’s signature, and the seal of the city, county, or state that issued it, with a filing date within one year of your birth.2eCFR. 22 CFR 51.42 – Persons Born in the United States Applying for a Passport for the First Time If you were born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad works instead.3U.S. Department of State. Birth of U.S. Citizens and Non-Citizen Nationals Abroad You’ll also need a driver’s license or other government photo ID plus a photocopy of the front and back.
The fees run $130 to the State Department and a separate $35 execution fee to the acceptance facility, and they must be paid as two separate payments. Combining them will get your application kicked back.4U.S. Department of State. United States Passport Fees
If you already have an undamaged passport issued when you were 16 or older and within the last 15 years, you can skip the in-person step entirely and renew by mail with Form DS-82.5USAGov. Renew an Adult Passport That’s the easiest version of the process.
When You Don’t Have a Birth Certificate
This is where paperwork becomes genuinely difficult. If no birth record exists on file in your state, you have to request a Letter of No Record from the state registrar. The letter must include your name, date of birth, the years searched, and a statement confirming no record exists.6U.S. Department of State. Get Citizenship Evidence for a U.S. Passport
You then submit early records from the first five years of your life to prove citizenship. Acceptable records include baptism certificates, hospital birth records, census records, early school records, family Bible entries, and doctor’s records of post-natal care. You may also need Form DS-10, a birth affidavit signed by someone with personal knowledge of your birth.6U.S. Department of State. Get Citizenship Evidence for a U.S. Passport Tracking down these documents can add weeks or months. Start early if you suspect your birth certificate may be unavailable.
The Photo Is a Common Failure Point
Passport photos trip up more applicants than you’d expect. The photo must be a 2-by-2-inch color image taken within the last six months, showing a full front view of your face against a plain white or off-white background, with your head measuring between 1 inch and 1⅜ inches from chin to crown.7U.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual. 8 FAM 402.1 – Passport Photographs
Eyeglasses are not allowed, even prescription glasses, unless you have a documented medical reason such as recent eye surgery.8U.S. Department of State. New Eyeglasses Policy for Visa and Passport Photographs Uniforms, hats, and headphones are prohibited, though head coverings worn for religious purposes are acceptable. A rejected photo stalls the entire application, so most people pay around $15 at a post office or pharmacy to have it done correctly.
Applying for a Child Is Harder Than Applying for Yourself
Getting a passport for a child under 16 requires both parents or legal guardians to appear in person with the child and sign the application.9U.S. Department of State. Apply for a Child’s Passport Under 16 The two-parent consent rule exists to prevent international parental abduction, and it creates real problems for divorced, separated, or geographically distant parents.
If one parent can’t attend, that parent can submit a notarized Form DS-3053 consenting to the passport. A parent with sole legal custody can apply alone by presenting a court order granting sole custody, a birth certificate listing only one parent, or a death certificate for the other parent.10eCFR. 22 CFR 51.28 – Minors When the other parent can’t be located or refuses to consent, the applying parent submits Form DS-5525 with supporting evidence such as restraining orders or incarceration records. Teens who are 16 or 17 can apply on their own, but a parent must either attend or provide a signed statement acknowledging the application.11USAGov. Get a Passport for a Minor Under 18
Name Changes Add Paperwork, Not Denial
If your name has changed since your last passport was issued, the path depends on timing. When both the name change and the passport are less than one year old, submit Form DS-5504 with a certified marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order. If more than a year has passed since either event, you renew using DS-82 by mail (if otherwise eligible) or DS-11 in person. Either way, you need the original or a certified copy of the legal document proving the name change.12U.S. Department of State. Name Change for U.S. Passport or Correct a Printing or Data Error
Legal Issues That Can Block a Passport Entirely
The situations below don’t slow down an application. They stop it. If any of these applies to you, no amount of correct paperwork will get you a passport until the underlying issue is resolved.
Past-Due Child Support Over $2,500
If you owe more than $2,500 in past-due child support, your state’s enforcement agency certifies your name to the federal Office of Child Support Services, which forwards it to the State Department. The result is an automatic denial.13Administration for Children and Families. Passport Denial Program 101 The threshold has been set by federal law since 2005, and it catches many parents off guard. You won’t get a passport until the arrears are resolved or brought below the threshold.14eCFR. 22 CFR 51.60 – Denial and Restriction of Passports
Federal Tax Debt Over $66,000
Seriously delinquent federal tax debt, defined for 2026 as more than $66,000, gets certified by the IRS to the State Department. You’ll receive a CP508C notice, and the State Department will generally deny a new application, hold a pending one, or revoke an existing passport.15Internal Revenue Service. Revocation or Denial of Passport in Cases of Certain Unpaid Taxes
If you apply while certified, the State Department holds your application open for 90 days so you can pay in full, enter an IRS payment plan, or dispute the certification. Do nothing during those 90 days and the application is denied and closed. Once the debt is resolved, the IRS reverses the certification within 30 days. If you’re overseas when your passport is revoked, the State Department may issue a limited-validity passport only for returning to the United States.15Internal Revenue Service. Revocation or Denial of Passport in Cases of Certain Unpaid Taxes
Criminal Justice Situations
Several criminal justice conditions trigger denial:
- An outstanding federal, state, or local felony arrest warrant.
- Probation, parole, or supervised release conditions that prohibit you from leaving the country.
- An active federal grand jury subpoena in a felony investigation or prosecution.
- A federal or state drug felony conviction where you used a passport or crossed an international border while committing the offense. The bar lasts through your imprisonment and any supervised release that follows.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 22 U.S. Code 2714 – Denial of Passports to Certain Convicted Drug Traffickers
For misdemeanor drug convictions involving border crossing, denial is discretionary rather than automatic, and first-time simple possession is explicitly exempt.17eCFR. 22 CFR 51.61 – Denial of Passports to Certain Convicted Drug Traffickers
Sex Offender Registration
Registered sex offenders can still get a passport, but federal law requires it to carry a unique visual identifier indicating registration status. The Secretary of State may also revoke a previously issued passport that lacks the identifier.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 22 U.S. Code 212b – Unique Passport Identifiers for Covered Sex Offenders
How Fast Can You Get One
Routine processing runs four to six weeks from the date the State Department receives your application, plus up to two weeks of mailing time on each end.19U.S. Department of State. How to Get My U.S. Passport Fast Expedited service adds $60 and shortens the wait to about two to three weeks.20U.S. Department of State. Renew Your Passport by Mail
For urgent travel, Passport Agencies serve customers by appointment who need to travel within 14 calendar days or need a foreign visa within 28 days.21U.S. Department of State. Make an Appointment at a Passport Agency Separate life-or-death emergency appointments exist when an immediate family member abroad has died, is in hospice care, or has a life-threatening illness or injury.22U.S. Department of State. Get a Passport if You Have a Life-or-Death Emergency
One timing trap worth knowing about even if you already hold a passport: many countries enforce a six-month validity rule, meaning your passport must remain valid for at least six months beyond your entry date. A passport that’s technically still valid can still get you denied boarding or turned away at immigration. Adult passports last 10 years; children’s passports last 5. Renew before you’re inside that six-month window.23U.S. Department of State. Apply for Your Passport as a 16-17 Year Old