To renew a U.S. passport with a name change, you mail one of three State Department forms along with your current passport, a certified original of your marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order, a new passport photo, and the fee that matches your situation. The form you use depends on when your passport was issued and how old you were at the time. Online renewal is not an option when your name has changed.
Which Form to Use
Three forms cover every name-change scenario, and picking the wrong one is the most common reason a packet gets sent back.
DS-5504 If Your Passport Is Less Than a Year Old
Use Form DS-5504 when your current passport was issued within the last year. The State Department treats this as a correction rather than a renewal, so there is no application fee unless you add expedited service.1U.S. Department of State. Change or Correct a Passport2U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport for Eligible Individuals
DS-82 for a Standard Renewal With a Name Change
Form DS-82 is the standard mail-in renewal form, and you can use it for a name change as long as you submit certified documentation of the change with the application.3U.S. Department of State. U.S. Passport Renewal Application for Eligible Individuals To qualify, all of the following must be true:
- You were 16 or older when the passport was issued.
- The passport was issued less than 15 years ago.
- You still have it, and it’s not damaged.
If you can’t document the name change with a certified marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order, DS-82 won’t work and you’ll need to apply in person.3U.S. Department of State. U.S. Passport Renewal Application for Eligible Individuals
DS-11 If You Don’t Qualify for the Others
Form DS-11 covers first-time applicants and anyone shut out of DS-82 or DS-5504. You’ll use it if your passport was issued before you turned 16, was issued more than 15 years ago, or has been lost, stolen, or damaged.4U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport DS-11 requires an in-person visit to a passport acceptance facility such as a post office, library, or county clerk’s office.5U.S. Department of State. Apply for Your Adult Passport
Online Renewal Is Not Available for Name Changes
The State Department’s online renewal system explicitly excludes applicants who are changing their name or other personal information.6U.S. Department of State. Renew Your Passport Online A name change means paper. Mail in DS-5504 or DS-82, or apply in person with DS-11.
What to Send With the Application
Every name-change application needs your most recent passport plus a certified copy or the original of the legal document that authorized the change. That means a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order of name change. Do not send photocopies or notarized copies of the name-change document.1U.S. Department of State. Change or Correct a Passport The State Department returns the original to you after processing.
You also need a passport photo taken within the last six months. It must be 2 by 2 inches with a white or off-white background, free of shadows or texture, with a neutral facial expression, both eyes open, and mouth closed.7U.S. Department of State. U.S. Passport Photos
On the form, enter your new legal name exactly as it appears on the supporting document, and use black ink. Your Social Security number is required by federal law; skipping it can trigger a $500 IRS penalty.8U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions about Passport Services – Section: Social Security Number Requirement If the name-change document is in a language other than English, include a certified English translation signed by the translator, with their printed name, address, and date.
What It Costs
The fee depends on which form you use. As of February 2026:9U.S. Department of State. United States Passport Fees
- DS-5504, within one year of issuance: no application fee.
- DS-82 renewal, passport book: $130.
- DS-82 renewal, passport card: $30.
- DS-11 new application, passport book: $130 application fee plus a $35 acceptance facility fee, for $165 total.
Expedited processing adds $60 to any application, and 1-to-3-day return delivery of the finished passport is another $22.05.10U.S. Department of State. How to Get my U.S. Passport Fast A DS-82 renewal with both add-ons runs $212.05 for a passport book.
Pay by check or money order made out to “U.S. Department of State,” with the applicant’s name and date of birth in the memo line. Credit and debit cards are not accepted for mail-in renewals.11U.S. Department of State. Passport Fees For in-person DS-11 applications, the acceptance facility sets its own payment rules for the $35 facility fee, so ask before you go.
Where to Mail It
Use USPS only. FedEx, UPS, and DHL cannot deliver to the P.O. Box addresses the State Department uses.1U.S. Department of State. Change or Correct a Passport
- Routine service from CA, FL, IL, MN, NY, or TX: National Passport Processing Center, P.O. Box 640155, Irving, TX 75064-0155.
- Routine service from all other states and Canada: National Passport Processing Center, P.O. Box 90155, Philadelphia, PA 19190-0155.
- Expedited service from any location: National Passport Processing Center, P.O. Box 90955, Philadelphia, PA 19190-0955. Write “EXPEDITE” on the outside of the envelope.
Send it with tracking. You’re mailing original legal documents, and you want proof of delivery.12U.S. Department of State. Renew Your Passport by Mail
How Long It Takes
As of early 2026, routine processing takes 4 to 6 weeks and expedited processing takes 2 to 3 weeks.13U.S. Department of State. Processing Times for U.S. Passports These windows shift with demand, so check the State Department’s processing times page before you mail anything, especially with travel booked.
Your new passport ships first. Your original name-change document arrives in a separate mailing that can show up as much as 8 weeks after the new passport.14U.S. Department of State. Frequently Asked Questions about Passport Services Your old passport is also returned separately.15USAGov. Renew an Adult Passport You can track your application status on the State Department’s website while you wait.
Booking Travel Before the New Passport Arrives
If you have a trip coming up and your passport still shows your old name, book your tickets in the name that matches your current passport. The name on your boarding pass has to match the travel document you present at the airport, and a mismatch is a reliable way to get denied boarding on an international flight. Carrying the marriage certificate or court order alongside the old-name passport can help explain the situation, but it isn’t a substitute for matching documents.
If You Need to Travel Soon
Expedited mail-in service at 2 to 3 weeks covers most time crunches.13U.S. Department of State. Processing Times for U.S. Passports For urgent travel, you can make an appointment at a regional passport agency if you have proof of international travel within 14 days or a life-or-death emergency abroad.10U.S. Department of State. How to Get my U.S. Passport Fast The $60 expedited fee applies at agencies too. Bring the name-change paperwork, your current passport, photos, and proof of travel.