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Passports

Obtaining Your First U.S. Passport

What documents do I need?

You become eligible for a 10-year-validity passport at the age of 16. Below this age, you may only receive 5-year passports. To obtain your first 10-year passport, appear in person and present the following at the Consular Section:

  • A completed form DS-11 (PRINT FORM DS-11); do not sign form DS-11 as you will be asked to sign in the presence of the Passport official. The form may be obtained at the ACS office or a U.S. passport agency. Be sure to include your social security number on the application form, as we cannot process your application without it.
  • Two recent 2" x 2" (50mm X 50mm) passport photos. Please review the Passport Photograph Requirements.
  • Proof of U.S. citizenship, in the form of a prior U.S. passport, a U.S.-issued birth certificate, Consular Report of Birth Abroad, Certificate of Citizenship, or Certificate of Naturalization. The Passport official may request additional evidence of citizenship in adjudicating your application, so we recommend that you bring all relevant documents. Other documents, such as U.S. Driver's Licenses, Military ID cards, Credit Cards and the like are NOT evidence of citizenship
  • If you have changed your name by court decree or through a marriage, submit the original court order for change of name, or your original marriage certificate (copies are not acceptable).
  • Fee of US$100 (in U.S. or Bruneian dollars)

May I have someone else submit an application for me? 

If you are applying for your first 10-year passport, you are required to appear in person.

How do I apply for a passport for a minor?

All applicants under age 16 must appear in person for a 5-year validity passport. The following must be provided:

  • Proof of the child’s U.S. citizenship, in the form of a prior U.S. passport, a U.S.issued birth certificate, Consular Report of Birth Abroad, Certificate of Citizenship, or Certificate of Naturalization. The Passport official may request additional evidence of citizenship in adjudicating your child’s application, so we recommend that you bring all of the above in your possession.
  • A completed form DS-11 (PRINT FORM DS-11) for the child; do not sign form DS-11 as you will be asked to sign in the presence of the Passport official. The form may be obtained at the ACS office or a U.S. passport agency. Be sure to include your child’s social security number on the application form, as we cannot process your application without it.
  • Two recent 2" x 2" (50mm X 50mm) passport photos. Please review the Passport Photograph Requirements.
  • Fee of US$85 (in U.S. or Bruneian dollars)

For applicants under age 14, there are additional requirements:

  • Both parents must be present.
  • Proof of identity of the parents or legal guardians submitting the application (passports or other official documents with a photograph are acceptable).
  • Proof of the relationship of the parents or legal guardians to the child (the child’s birth certificate, adoption certificate, court order of guardianship, or other official documents naming the parents or guardians). The names on your identification documents must match your names on the other evidence.
  • If your child’s name has been changed from the name on his or her birth certificate or most recent passport, submit the original official documents authorizing the name change (copies are not acceptable).
Who must appear?

All applicants under age 16 must appear in person.

Both parents must appear together with a child under the age of 14 unless one parent has provided a notarized Letter of Consent (see below). On July 2, 2001, Public Law 106-113 took effect requiring a person applying for a U.S. passport for a child under 14 to demonstrate that both parents consent to the issuance of a passport to the child, or that the applying person has sole authority to obtain the passport. The purpose of the new requirement is to lessen the possibility that a U. S. passport might be used in the course of an international parental child abduction.

Parents having concerns about passport applications for any minor child who may become the victim of an international parental child abduction, including children between the ages of 14 and 18 who are not covered by this new law, should contact the Office of Children’s Issues in the Bureau of Consular Affairs, Department of State, Washington, DC at (202) 663-2641, or visit the Office of Children’s Issues online.

What if one parent cannot be present?

Both parents are expected to appear in person at the Embassy with a child under age 14. If only one parent is able to appear, one of the following will be required:

  • Form DS-3053 or a similar letter of authorization completed by the absent parent and notarized, accompanied by a original or good photocopy of a photo ID of that parent. This notarization can be done by a Brunei notary, or at the Embassy.  Notarizations done for this purpose at the Embassy are free of charge.
    • Valid U.S. or foreign passport
    • Valid drivers license
    • Valid military ID
    • Valid U.S. government ID
    • Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services with photograph; or
    • Alien Resident Card from BCIS (Green Card).
  • Evidence of the appearing parent's sole authority to apply for the passport in the form of one of the following:
  •  
    • Consular Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) or Certification of Birth Abroad (Form DS-1350) listing only applying parent;
    • Court order granting sole custody to the applying parent (unless child's travel is restricted by that order);
    • Adoption decree (if applying parent is sole adopting parent);
    • Court order specifically permitting applying parent's or guardian's travel with the child;
    • Judicial declaration of incompetence of non-applying parent; or
    • Death certificate of non-applying parent.

NOTICE: Consent forms or other statements become part of the passport application and a false statement on the consent form or other document is the legal responsibility of the applying parent/guardian and is subject to prosecution. Providing false information on a part of the passport application, whether contemporaneously with the application form or any other time, is subject to prosecution under the applicable statutes for passport fraud and perjury.

There are also provisions for exceptions in special or emergency circumstances. Additional information is available on the Department of State’s website.