US Passport fees going up! - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

**maracle** · 07-04-2010, 12:41 PM

If any US citizens are going to need a new passport soon, you'd be smart to apply ASAP.

On July 13th the prices are increasing from $75 to $110, and additional passport pages will cost $82 up from $0.

As general advice due to the new fee for pages, if you think you might need them include a note with your visa application requesting additional visa pages in your passport, plus a justifiction ("due to an upcoming period of frequent travel I'm anticipating" or something). They should provide a 52 page passport instead of 28 pages in this case, with no fee. Although since it's just based on a note and a cooperative passport agency employee it can be hit or miss

New Passport Fees - Effective July 13

**worldwidemike** · 07-05-2010, 05:53 AM

I checked on additional pages a year or two ago and was quoted a price of somewhere in the area of $50. Never heard about the "free" additional pages!

Well, I was hoping that the era of high government fees discouraging international travel would disappear with the previous administration. Just goes to show you that the current administration is not some new Camelot and is simply the equivalent of changing the curtains. Same house. Same windows. Just different cosmetic changes.

Political rant off...thanks for the info...!

worldwidemike

**expatben** · 07-05-2010, 11:57 AM

The way passport fees are going up around the world its clear to see why many people do not have passports.

**maracle** · 07-05-2010, 04:34 PM

Some consulates were charging for them, but there was no official policy to do so.

The State Department charges these fees because they're required by law to recover the cost of consular services through fees (including their overhead and whatnot I assume). Which makes sense in a way - user fees are an efficient way to tax.

I do think visa application fees for tourists should be reduced, the investment of US tax dollars would be more than made up for by all the spending those tourists do in the US.

Funny side note, the fee for renouncing your citizenship is now $450, up from $0 :D

**space virgin** · 07-10-2010, 12:16 AM

Glad I got my extra pages (free) a couple of months ago!

For anyone renewing or getting a new passport, it's free to get a "larger" book with like 52 pages instead of the standard 26 or whatever it is, so you may want to go that route if you think you may be traveling a lot. I didn't think about it much until I went on a few trips that racked up between 6 to 8 stamps each time, in addition to 2 full pages taken up by Indian visas.

**ChasinJason1313** · 07-31-2010, 01:06 PM

OF course this crap happens a couple months before I have to get my first passport renewel. Bull crappola!!

**travelpunk** · 08-07-2010, 08:15 PM

Sucks on the fee increase!

Quick question.

I got mine renewed a few months ago in Madrid, then I moved to another apartment, and can't even remember if they kept the old one. I hadn't even thought about it until this moment. I think they kept it and just sent me the new one.

Is it standard that they keep the old one with all the country stamps in them when you go to renew your passport?

If so, that sucks! Those stamps had some good memories

!

**juliagulia** · 08-07-2010, 08:51 PM

I've renewed mine quite a number of times (got my first at age one and subsequent ones every five years until now) and I had ALL of my old ones returned to me... I still have my very first passport (buried somewhere...). They just punched holes in them... So, if it's not standard, then I had some really nice people handling my information!

**travelpunk** · 08-07-2010, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by juliagulia

I've renewed mine quite a number of times (got my first at age one and subsequent ones every five years until now) and I had ALL of my old ones returned to me... I still have my very first passport (buried somewhere...). They just punched holes in them... So, if it's not standard, then I had some really nice people handling my information!

Thanks for the clarification! I guess I did get it back. That's good to know!

I just have no clue where it is...

**maracle** · 08-17-2010, 08:14 PM

Yes, they send it back because any visas in the passport may still be valid. Depends on the country. For me, my passport has a fee payment sticker for Argentina valid for 10 years if I bring it along with my new passport.