How to Apply for a Passport Book and Card Together

To apply for a passport book and card together, submit a single application (Form DS-11 if you’ve never had a passport, or Form DS-82 if you’re renewing) and check the box requesting both documents. You’ll provide one set of citizenship and identity documents, one passport photo, and one combined fee. The book and card are printed and mailed separately, so they won’t reach you at the same time.

One Application, Two Documents

The application form has a checkbox for “both,” which is the whole trick. One photo, one set of supporting documents, one facility fee if you’re applying in person. You save money compared to filing two separate applications because the $35 acceptance fee is charged per application, not per document.¹

The book works for any international travel, in any mode: flights, land crossings, cruises. The card is wallet-sized and cheaper, but it’s limited to land and sea travel between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and parts of the Caribbean. You cannot board an international flight with the card alone.² Both are REAL ID–compliant, so either one clears a TSA checkpoint for domestic flights.³

For adults 16 and older, both documents are valid for 10 years. For children under 16, both are valid for 5 years.⁴ If you apply for both at once, their clocks start together. If you add the card later, it will carry its own separate expiration date.

If You’ve Never Had a U.S. Passport

First-time applicants, applicants for a child under 16, and anyone who doesn’t meet the renewal criteria use Form DS-11 and must apply in person at a passport acceptance facility such as a post office, library, or county clerk’s office.⁵ Print the form before your appointment, but do not sign it. The acceptance agent has to witness your signature.

Bring the following:

Proof of U.S. citizenship: an original birth certificate with the registrar’s seal, a previous U.S. passport, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, or a Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship. Digital or electronic birth certificates aren’t accepted.
Photo identification, typically a valid driver’s license. If your license is from a different state than where you’re applying, bring a second photo ID.
One 2×2 inch color passport photo taken within the last six months.⁶
Photocopies of the originals for both citizenship and ID documents.

Your citizenship evidence will be returned to you by mail, sometimes weeks after you apply. Don’t hand over a birth certificate you’ll need for something else in the near term.⁷

If You’re Renewing or Adding the Card

You can use Form DS-82 by mail if you already have a passport book or card that was issued for 10 years and is either expiring within a year or expired less than five years ago. The DS-82 also handles the “I have the book but want to add a card” scenario, or vice versa. No facility visit, no acceptance fee.⁸

Online renewal is also available, but the eligibility rules are stricter. You must be 25 or older, keeping the same name and personal information, physically located in a U.S. state or territory, and holding your undamaged current passport. Online renewal runs at routine speed only, with no expedited option, so give yourself at least six weeks before any international trip.⁹ You can renew a book, a card, or both online as long as you currently hold whichever documents you’re renewing.

What It Costs in 2026

Applying for both together is cheaper than filing two separate applications. All figures below are current as of February 2026.¹

Adults 16 and older, first-time (DS-11):

Book and card together: $160 application fee plus a $35 facility fee, total $195
Book only: $130 plus $35, total $165
Card only: $30 plus $35, total $65

Adults, renewal (DS-82, mail or online) — no facility fee applies:

Book and card: $160
Book only: $130
Card only: $30

Children under 16, first-time (DS-11):

Book and card together: $115 application fee plus $35 facility fee, total $150
Book only: $100 plus $35, total $135
Card only: $15 plus $35, total $50

Optional add-ons: expedited processing is $60 per application and shortens the agency’s review from 4–6 weeks to 2–3 weeks. Return delivery in 1 to 3 days costs an additional $22.05 per application.

The application fee is payable to “U.S. Department of State” by personal check, certified check, cashier’s check, or money order, with the applicant’s name and date of birth in the memo line. The $35 facility fee is paid separately to the acceptance facility, and accepted payment methods vary by location.

How Long It Takes

Routine processing runs 4 to 6 weeks; expedited runs 2 to 3 weeks. Those windows only cover time at the passport agency. Add up to two weeks for your application to reach the agency and another two weeks for documents to return to you.¹⁰

Realistically, a routine application takes 8 to 10 weeks door-to-door. Expedited takes about 4 to 7 weeks. If you’re booking travel, work backward from your departure date with generous padding, and remember the card often arrives later than the book because it ships by slower mail.

Check status on the State Department’s tracking page using your last name, date of birth, and the last four digits of your Social Security number.¹¹ If you gave an email address, you’ll also get automatic status updates.

How the Documents Come Back

Even though you applied once, you’ll receive three separate mailings. The book arrives first through a trackable delivery service. The card ships in a separate envelope by First Class Mail, which is the only shipping method the State Department uses for cards. Your original citizenship documents come back in a third First Class mailing, sometimes up to four weeks after the new passport ships.¹¹

Because the book uses trackable shipping and the card does not, you can follow the book’s progress but will need to watch the mailbox for the card. There’s no way to combine them into a single shipment.

Check Everything When It Arrives

Sign the book as soon as it shows up. An unsigned book can cause problems at border control. Look over the spelling of your name, your date of birth, and photo quality on both the book and the card.

If the State Department made a printing or data mistake, you can get a corrected passport at no charge using Form DS-5504. Send the form with the defective passport, a new photo, and evidence of the correct information. Catch the error within one year and the replacement is valid for a full 10 years; report it later than that and the replacement carries the original’s expiration date.¹²

If You Need to Travel Sooner Than Processing Allows

If your international trip is within 14 calendar days (or 28 days when you also need to obtain a foreign visa), you can request an in-person appointment at a regional passport agency or center. Book online if you haven’t yet applied, or call 1-877-487-2778 if your application is already in the system. Appointments aren’t guaranteed to be available.¹³

A separate emergency track exists only for the death, dying condition, or life-threatening illness or injury of an immediate family member abroad. Immediate family means a parent, child, spouse, sibling, or grandparent, and does not extend to aunts, uncles, or cousins. Documentation from a doctor, mortuary, or death certificate is required, along with proof of travel within two weeks. Traveling abroad for your own medical care doesn’t qualify.¹⁴

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U.S. Department of State. U.S. Passport Photos
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U.S. Department of State. Apply for Your Adult Passport
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