Routine processing of an infant’s first passport takes four to six weeks, and expedited processing takes two to three weeks, so how long it takes to get an infant passport depends mostly on which service you pay for and how quickly you can gather the documents.1U.S. Department of State. Get Your Processing Time Both clocks start when the processing center receives the application, not when you drop it off at the post office, and the finished passport still has to travel back to you by mail. Apply as soon as you know about the trip, and treat the State Department’s estimates as minimums.
What the Two Timelines Actually Cover
The four-to-six-week routine window and the two-to-three-week expedited window are processing time only. On the front end, add mail transit from the acceptance facility to the processing center. On the back end, add delivery of the finished passport to your address. Your citizenship evidence comes back in a separate mailing to reduce the risk of losing everything at once.
Expedited service costs an extra $60 per application on top of the regular fees.2U.S. Department of State. United States Passport Fees for Acceptance Facilities You can also pay $22.05 for 1-to-3-day return delivery instead of standard mail, and the acceptance facility can send the application to the processing center by Priority Mail Express for an additional fee that varies.3U.S. Department of State. Passport Fees Paying to speed up shipping in both directions is the cheapest way to shave real days off the total.
If You’re Traveling Sooner Than Expedited Allows
For international travel within 14 calendar days, you can book an appointment at a regional passport agency or center through the State Department’s online appointment system. Proof of your upcoming trip, like a flight itinerary or ticket confirmation, is required.4U.S. Department of State. Make an Appointment at a Passport Agency or Center Agencies serve urgent cases by appointment only, and appointments can be hard to get during busy seasons.
Life-or-Death Emergencies
A separate service exists when an immediate family member abroad has died, is dying, or has a life-threatening illness or injury. Immediate family means a parent, child, spouse, sibling, or grandparent. You’ll need documentation of the emergency, such as a hospital letter on official letterhead signed by a doctor, plus proof of international travel within the next two weeks.5U.S. Department of State. Get a Passport if you Have a Life-or-Death Emergency Traveling abroad for your own medical treatment doesn’t qualify. Try the online appointment system first; if that fails, call 1-877-487-2778 during business hours or 202-647-4000 evenings, weekends, and federal holidays.
What Slows Applications Down
Most delays happen before the application ever reaches the processing center. Missing or wrong documents will send you back for another appointment, and any error inside the application can push processing well past the stated window.
The Birth Certificate
Not every birth certificate qualifies as citizenship evidence. The State Department wants an official certified copy from the vital records office, not a hospital keepsake. It must show the child’s full name, date and place of birth, both parents’ full names, the filing date (within one year of birth), the registrar’s signature, and a raised, embossed, or multicolored seal.6U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Consular Affairs. Get Citizenship Evidence for a U.S. Passport Ordering a certified copy from the state can itself take several weeks, so start there if you don’t already have one.
Both Parents’ Consent
Both parents or legal guardians must appear in person with the baby and sign the application in front of the acceptance agent. The rule is written into 22 CFR § 51.28 to keep one parent from getting a passport for a child without the other’s knowledge.7eCFR. 22 CFR 51.28 – Minors
If one parent genuinely can’t attend, they can complete Form DS-3053, a notarized statement of consent, and include a photocopy of their valid photo ID. The notarized form expires 90 days after signing, so timing matters.8U.S. Department of State. Statement of Consent: U.S. Passport Issuance to a Minor Under 16 If the other parent can’t be located at all, you may be able to skip consent with a court order granting sole legal custody, the other parent’s death certificate, a birth certificate listing only one parent, or Form DS-5525 explaining in detail why the second parent is unreachable.7eCFR. 22 CFR 51.28 – Minors
The Photo
Passport photos of babies are the part most parents underestimate. The photo must be 2×2 inches, taken within the last six months, on a white or off-white background, with no other people or objects in the frame.9U.S. Department of State. U.S. Passport Photos For infants, closed or partially open eyes are acceptable, but that’s the only concession. Laying the baby on a plain white sheet and shooting from directly above tends to work; watch for shadows across the face. If you use a pharmacy or photo studio, ask first whether they’ve done infant passport photos, because a rejected photo means starting the appointment over.
Social Security Number
Federal law requires an SSN on the application. If your baby doesn’t have one yet, include a signed statement to that effect under penalty of perjury. Leaving the field blank without an explanation can delay or derail the application and trigger a $500 IRS penalty.10U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions about Passport Services
What It Costs
A passport book for a child under 16 costs $135: a $100 application fee to the State Department and a $35 acceptance fee to the facility where you apply.2U.S. Department of State. United States Passport Fees for Acceptance Facilities These are two separate payments to two payees, often required as checks or money orders, so prepare both before your appointment. Add $60 for expedited processing and $22.05 for faster return delivery if you need them.
A passport card is cheaper at $15 plus the $35 acceptance fee, but it only works for land or sea entry from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, or Bermuda. It can’t be used for any air travel, so if there’s a flight involved, the book is the only option.11U.S. Department of State. Apply for a Child’s Passport Under 16
Tracking the Application
Once the application is submitted, you can check its status at passportstatus.state.gov. It can take up to two weeks for the status to show as “In Process,” so an empty result in the first days doesn’t mean anything is wrong.12U.S. Department of State. Checking Your Application Status The passport and the citizenship document arrive in separate envelopes. If you paid for expedited return delivery, the passport reaches you within one to three days of being mailed.
One Planning Note
A passport issued to a child under 16 is valid for five years, and it can’t be renewed. When it expires, the whole in-person application repeats: new Form DS-11, fresh photo, both parents present.13U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions about Passport Services14USAGov. Get a Passport for a Minor Under 18 Many countries also require the passport to be valid for at least six months past your return date, so a book that hasn’t technically expired may still be turned away at the border. Check your destination’s entry rules before you book anything.