US Passport Renewal, Is Stapling Required?

US Passport Renewal, Is Stapling Required? - Crop unrecognizable person demonstrating British passport

My US passport has expired. I have filled out the forms and have booked a pickup/delivery with DX Services for Tuesday.

I have the required photo, and I am looking at this part of the application... enter image description here

It looks like four (4) staples are required. I haven't used a stapler in years, and I don't even know if there's one in my office. Do I actually have to go find a stapler and staple it 4 times?

I don't want to damage the photo and have my application refused on the basis of a damaged photo.

Question: do I actually have to staple my photo in the designated places? Or am I reading this wrong and there's a different way to submit one's photo?

Secondarily: if the answer above is 'yes', do I have to use some kind of American standard staple? Or will a UK standard staple be OK? The guidance, for example, says that A4 paper is OK (and I am thankful for that). They are so picky and persnickety about everything in a way that questions such as these are relevant.



Best Answer

I believe that a passport facility person will attach the photograph for you. Obviously, the person in charge of proofing the form hasn't updated the form to reflect this, and thus most people attach the photograph, with four staples, as instructed by text within the photo box. Hopefully the State Department will fix the form so that people's time and money aren't wasted.




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Do you have to send in your old passport when renewing in USA?

When it comes time to renew a passport, one of the most common questions we hear is \u201cCan I keep my old passport?\u201d The answer is yes \u2013 eventually. While you do have to submit your old passport as part of the passport renewal process, your old, cancelled passport is usually sent back to you once the renewal goes through.

Do you need 2 photos to renew passport?

You must provide one photo with your passport application. All our photo policies apply to both adults and children under age 16.




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Answer 2

Well, I just submitted my passport for renewal, paying for expedited service b/c I need it asap in order to apply for a visa to Cuba. I stapled in the 4 corners, sent it by USPS overnight delivery, and just today (10 days after confirmed delivery to the passport renewal office) I received an email stating that my photo was damaged, thus I need to send another, within 90 days.

So I've just spent another $40+ to get another photo taken, and send it again overnight USPS. This time it wasn't required to staple it anywhere thank goodness. I wish they would change the form, 4 staples is just silly.

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