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First Time Adult Passports
 

You should follow this process if ...

  1. You are applying for an adult passport for the first time.  Adult passports are issued to citizens 16 years of age and older.
  2. Your previous U.S. passport was lost, stolen, or damaged.
  3. Your previous U.S. passport has expired and was issued more than 15 years ago.
  4. Your name has changed since your passport was issued and you do not have a legal document formally confirming the name change, such as a court order or marriage or divorce certificate.

To apply, please appear in person at the American Citizen Services (ACS) unit at the time of your appointment and bring the following documents and information:

  1. A completed form DS-11, Application for a U.S. Passport, which also can be picked up in hard copy at the ACS unit.  Please do not sign the DS-11 application until instructed to do so at the Embassy.
  2. One passport photo (size 2”x2” with a white background).
  3. Proof of U.S. citizenship, which may include:
    1. An expired U.S. passport.
    2. A certified birth certificate, issued by the city, county or state of your birth.  (Note:  a certified birth certificate has a registrar’s raised, embossed, impressed, or  multicolored seal; a registrar’s signature; and the date the certificate was filed with the registrar’s office, which must be within one year of your birth.)
      • A delayed birth certificate filed more than one year after your birth may be acceptable under certain circumstances. 
    3. Consular Report of Birth Abroad (FS-240) or Certification of Birth.
      • If you were born abroad and do not have one of these documents, you will need to provide your foreign birth certificate, proof of citizenship of your U.S. citizen parent(s), your parents’ marriage certificate, and an affidavit from your U.S. citizen parent(s) detailing periods and places of residence (in the U.S. and abroad) prior to your birth.
    4. Naturalization Certificate.
    5. Certificate of Citizenship.
    6. Note:  Voter registration cards and military discharge papers are not proof of citizenship.
  4. If you do not have a previous U.S. passport or a certified birth certificate, you will need to provide secondary evidence of your birth.  Please bring as much secondary evidence of your birth as you can locate.  Such evidence may include:
    • Letter of No Record – Issued by the state of your birth with your name and date of birth, indicating that the state has no birth certificate on file for you.  The Letter must indicate which years were searched for a birth record; 
    • A Birth Affidavit (DS-10) (PDF - 192kb), completed by an older blood relative who has personal knowledge of your birth.  The DS-10 should be notarized.  
    • Other supporting documentation of your birth, which may include: baptismal certificate, hospital birth record, census records, early school records, doctor’s record of post-natal care, or family records.  (Note:  These documents must be   early public records showing the date and place of birth, preferably created within the first five years of your life.)
  5. Present Proof of Identity, which may include:
    • An expired U.S. passport.
    • Naturalization Certificate.
    • Certificate of Citizenship.
    • A current and valid driver’s license, military identification card, or other government-issued identification card.
    • Note:  A Social Security card is not proof of identity.
    • If you do not have one of the documents listed above, you must provide: 
      1. a variety of documents and cards, not acceptable alone as identification, such as credit cards, bank cards, a Social Security card, etc. and 
      2. two persons who have known you for at least two years must appear in person and execute an Affidavit of Identifying Witness (DS-71) (PDF - 73.2kb).

How to request an appointment
Applications for U.S. passports are by appointment only to ensure that you are prepared for the interview and have all the necessary documents.  Click here to schedule an appointment online.  Please do not schedule an appointment until you have completed the required form.  If you have trouble scheduling an appointment online or downloading the necessary form, please e-mail us at Panama-ACS@state.gov.

Fee:  $135, payable at the consular section’s cashier window in cash or by credit card (Mastercard, Visa, Diner’s Club, Discovery, American Express)

Processing time:  Passports are printed in the United States.  Please allow at least three weeks for your new passport to be available for pick up.  You may check the status of your passport application online at:  http://travel.state.gov/passport/status/status_2567.html

When your new passport is ready:

  1. You will receive an e-mail from Panama-ACS@state.gov to the e-mail address specified by you in box 8 of your DS-11, notifying you that your passport is ready to be picked up.  Please do not return to pick up your passport before receiving this e-mail notification. If more than three weeks has passed and you have not received an e-mail, contact us at Panama-ACS@state.gov and request a status update.
  2. Return to ACS with your old passport.  Your old passport will be cancelled and returned to you.  You may send another person to pick up your new passport with a signed letter of consent, your old passport, and a copy of your identification.  First-time applicants and persons applying for replacement of lost or stolen passports need only show their cashier’s receipt.