Back in 1916, the first passport agency outside of Washington, D.C. was opened in New York and it was called the “Branch Office of the Bureau of Citizenship”.
Today, the State of New York has 636 passport facilities and issues nearly 1 million passports each year! This explains why so many people ask questions regarding passport appointments in New York.In this post, we will do our best to answer your New York passport appointment questions, including how to schedule, whether you really need an appointment, as well as what to bring with you to the meeting.
In this article:
- Find out if you need to make an appointment for a passport in New York
- Life or death emergency
- Urgent travel
- Other cases
- What to bring to your passport appointment in New York
- Canceling or rescheduling passport appointments in New York
- Get professional photos for your passport without leaving your home
Find out if you need to make an appointment for a passport in New York
Most passport applications can be submitted at post offices and don’t require appointments. The situation is different though when:
- you have a life or death emergency that is forcing you to travel outside of the US within the next 3 (three) business days;
- you are traveling internationally within the next 14 calendar days and either don’t have a passport or your passport has expired;
- you want to file a routine or expedited passport application and your local acceptance facility accepts applications by appointment only;
Below we will go over scheduling a passport appointment in New York in each of these cases.
Schedule a passport appointment in New York – life or death emergency
According to the US Department of State, a life or death emergency includes the death or terminal illness of an immediate family member, or any other illness or injury that may be life-threatening to them.
Appointments for these types of emergencies are scheduled at a passport agency or center, and in the case of New York, it will be the New York Passport Agency located at 376 Hudson Street. Your meeting at the New York Passport Agency will have to be scheduled up to 2 (two) weeks before you travel internationally, but the actual appointment date must be within 3 (three) business days of the trip.
To schedule, you will need to call 1-877-487-2778/1-888-874-7793 (for the hearing/speech impaired), Monday through Friday from 8 am to 8 pm.
If you are calling after 8 pm on a weekday or calling on a weekend or national holiday, you must call 202-647-4000 (do not contact this number between 8 am and 8 pm on weekdays, because there will be no response). You can also select to be assisted by a Spanish-speaking representative when you call.
The only way to schedule an appointment at a passport agency is by calling – there is no option to schedule online. Once your date has been confirmed, you will receive an email from the National Passport Information Center (NPIC) with further instructions. You can apply for a new passport or renew an expired one at the passport agency if you have an urgent or emergency trip coming up.
Be mindful that although customers traveling due to a life or death emergency get priority, the passport agency cannot guarantee that you will qualify for an appointment as their service is pretty limited. The passport agency is closed on federal holidays. The closest subway stations are Houston Street (1 and 2 trains) and Spring Street (A, C, and E lines).
Looking for more tips for your passport application? Look no further:
Scheduling passport appointments in New York – urgent travel
If you have a plan to travel internationally within the next 14 days and realized that you don’t have a valid passport, you will have to call 1-877-487-2778/1-888-874-7793 (8 am – 10 pm Monday through Friday) to schedule a meeting and apply in person at the New York Passport Agency (the Hudson Street location). The line does not operate on weekends and federal holidays.
Keep in mind that to be eligible to apply for a passport in the urgent travel mode, your trip must be within the next 2 (two) weeks. Your appointment must be scheduled within 14 calendar days of your travel, and should you require a travel visa, it must be within 28 days of the trip.
Scheduling passport appointments in New York – other cases
Routine and expedited passport services are provided by passport facilities and may sometimes require an appointment.
Routine passport services may include applying for your first US passport, applying for a minor, or when your passport was lost or stolen, issued when you were younger than 16, or issued over 15 years ago. The expedited service involves shorter processing times between 5 (five) to 7 (seven) weeks.
You should visit the US Department of State’s website and search for your local office to find out whether they require an appointment for an in-person meeting. Upon typing in your zip code or choosing “New York” from the drop-down menu and clicking “Search”, a list of all the passport acceptance facilities in your area will show up.
When you click the name of your facility, under the “Hours of Passport Acceptance”, you will see whether the office accepts walk-ins or is by appointment only.
Luckily, an appointment at a passport acceptance facility can be scheduled online – all you have to do is visit the USPS scheduler page, select the service you wish to apply for, and provide your contact information.
The USPS passport appointments take 15 minutes on average and it is recommended that you arrive 10 (ten) minutes early. When applying for a minor’s passport, both parents must be present at the meeting.
What to bring to your passport appointment in New York
If applying for an emergency or urgent travel passport at the New York Passport Agency, you will have to provide the following:
- appointment confirmation number;
- instructions you were emailed by the National Passport Information Center;
- proof of your emergency – a signed letter from a qualified medical professional, a death certificate, or a statement from the mortuary (any documents that are not originally in English must be translated by a professional and competent translator);
- proof of your international travel – an itinerary, flight receipt, and if traveling by land or sea to Bermuda, Canada, the Caribbean, or Mexico, you can also bring your hotel booking, international car insurance, or cruise tickets;
- completed passport application form (DS-11 or DS-82);
- proof of identity and citizenship;
- a copy of a government-issued ID (driver’s license or state ID);
- 1 (one) passport photo that meets the US Department of State requirements;
- application fee of $130 for adults or $100 for minors; expedite fee of $60; 1 (one) to 2 (two) day delivery fee of $18.32 (optional).
At the New York Passport Agency, you can pay with all major credit cards, debit or check cards (not ATM cards), checks, bank draft or money order, or cash (provided that you have the exact amount as no change can be given).
Applicants submitting their passport package at one of the US passport acceptance facilities will need to bring the following documents with them:
- completed application form (DS-11)*;
- proof of identity with a photocopy of the front and back;
- proof of US citizenship with a photocopy of the front and back;
- 1 (one) passport photo that meets the US Department of State requirements;
- applicable passport fees: $130 for a passport book or $30 for a passport card for adults/$100 for a passport book or $15 for a passport card for minors, and an execution fee of $35.
*NOTE: Make sure not to sign your application before your appointment, as a postal employee must witness your signature.
Canceling or rescheduling passport appointments in New York
If you wish to reschedule or modify your existing appointment at the New York Passport Agency, you must do so by phone, which means calling the exact number you called to schedule the original meeting – 1-877-487-2778 or 1-888-874-7793 if you are speech or hearing impaired.
If you wish to cancel altogether, find the confirmation email from the National Passport Information Center, change the subject line to “Cancel My Appointment” and forward the email to [email protected].
If you cannot locate the email, you can also email the NPIC with your appointment’s date and location, unique identifier, and confirmation number. Do not use this email to include any other requests because they won’t be answered by the NPIC.
In the case of USPS locations, you must use the confirmation email which has the option to cancel or edit an existing appointment or schedule a new one. To make any modifications to your scheduled passport meeting, you will need the confirmation number.
Get professional photos for your passport without leaving your home
It was in 1914 that the Department of State began requiring photos to be submitted with passport applications. While back then it must’ve been a drag to take official document pictures, today we have such amazing online tools as Passport Photo Online – an app that lets you take professional passport, visa, and ID photos conveniently from home.
The app features a very accurate, built-in AI system that’s specially designed to scan and verify each photo to make sure it complies with all the State Department requirements. Additionally, each photo is also verified by a human expert. If you decide to get your photos with Passport Photo Online, you will:
- have your photo cropped and adjusted to the correct dimensions;
- have the background of your photo removed;
- be able to take your pictures at home;
- get a double refund guarantee if your photo doesn’t get accepted;
- get unlimited takes;
- save up to 40% when compared to other passport photo services.
Getting a professionally assessed photo with Passport Photo Online is a great option if you’re short on time and your meeting at the New York Passport Agency or passport office is coming up.
Passport appointments in New York: FAQ
In this section, we go even further and answer your frequently asked questions regarding passport appointments in New York.
How do I make an appointment at the New York Passport Agency?
To schedule an in-person meeting at the New York Passport Agency, you must call 1-877-487-2778 (or 1-888-874-7793 if you’re hearing or speech impaired), Monday through Friday.
For life or death emergencies, the above numbers can be called between 8 am and 8 pm on business days; if you require assistance after 8 pm on a weekday, or on a weekend or federal holiday, please call 202-647-4000.
If your travel is urgent but not an emergency and you must leave the country within the next two weeks, you should call 1-877-487-2778 or 1-888-874-7793, between 8 am and 10 pm Monday through Friday.
Can I make a passport appointment online?
The only situation in which you can do this is if you’re applying for routine passport processing at a passport facility such as a post office.
For all emergency and urgent passports, appointments have to be made by calling the NPIC at 1-877-487-2778 or 1-888-874-7793, and 202-647-4000 on weekends and federal holidays for life/death emergencies.
Can I go to a passport office without an appointment?
Passport agencies always require appointments. Also, you should never walk in to a passport office for routine processing either, as many post offices and other facilities now require appointments as well.
Make sure to visit the US State Department website to find out whether your particular location requires an appointment.
Passport appointments in New York – conclusion
If you need to get a passport in New York, make sure to find out whether you’ll need an appointment. Services for emergency or urgent passports are provided by passport agencies and always require appointments. The New York Passport Agency is located at 376 Hudson Street and the easiest way to get there is by taking the 1 or 2 train to Houston Street or the A, C, or E train to Spring Street.
Before you arrive at the passport agency on the day of your appointment, be sure to have all the necessary documents, including your appointment confirmation. You are also advised to show up approximately 15 minutes early to allow enough time for security screening.
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Magda is an art & travel expert who is passionate about all things late-Victorian, history, languages, casa museos, Spain, and food illustration. She is a specialist in the field of biometric photography. Magda also loves reading, creative writing, and hanging out with her three cats.
