How to Get a Passport at a CT Post Office: Appointments, Fees, and Documents

To get a passport at a Connecticut post office, book an appointment at a participating location, bring a completed Form DS-11 (unsigned), your proof of citizenship, a photo ID with photocopies, a 2 x 2 inch passport photo, and payment for two separate fees totaling at least $165 for an adult passport book. The appointment itself takes about 15 minutes, and your passport arrives by mail roughly six to ten weeks later.

First, Check Whether You Can Skip the Post Office

Not everyone needs an in-person visit. If you already hold a passport that was issued when you were 16 or older, was issued within the last 15 years, is undamaged, has never been reported lost or stolen, and is in your current name (or you can document a name change with a marriage certificate or court order), you can renew by mail using Form DS-82 and skip the post office entirely.¹

Everyone else uses Form DS-11 in person: first-time applicants, anyone whose last passport was issued before age 16, anyone with a damaged, lost, or stolen passport, and all children under 16.² Fill out the DS-11 online, print it, and leave it unsigned. You sign at the counter in front of the postal clerk, who acts as the acceptance agent.

Book an Appointment at a Participating Post Office

Dozens of post offices across Connecticut accept passport applications, but they keep limited hours for the service and most require an appointment. Use the USPS Retail Customer Appointment Scheduler at tools.usps.com to find a participating location and reserve a slot.³ You can also schedule at a lobby self-service kiosk or at the retail counter.⁴

When booking, pick the service that matches what you need: new passport only, new passport with photo services, or photo services only. If you want the post office to take your photo on-site, choose a location that offers it. Plan on about 15 minutes per person at the appointment, and arrive about 10 minutes early.

What to Bring

Proof of U.S. Citizenship

Bring one original or certified document: a U.S. birth certificate issued by a city, county, or state; a previous undamaged full-validity U.S. passport (even if expired); a Consular Report of Birth Abroad; or a Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship.⁵ Photocopies and notarized copies are not accepted for this purpose.

A birth certificate must list your full name, date and place of birth, and your parents’ full names, carry the registrar’s signature and the official seal, and have been filed within one year of your birth. Hospital or commemorative certificates do not qualify.⁵ Your original goes with the application and is returned by mail separately after your passport ships.⁶

Proof of Identity

Bring a valid photo ID: a Connecticut driver’s license, a previous U.S. passport, a Certificate of Naturalization, a government employee ID, or a U.S. military ID. Digital or mobile driver’s licenses are not accepted. You need the physical card.⁵

Photocopies

Make a single-sided photocopy of the front and back of your photo ID on white paper, at full size, and a photocopy of your citizenship document.⁷ Some post offices will copy them for a fee, but make them in advance so you aren’t stuck if the machine is down.

Your Passport Photo

The photo must be 2 x 2 inches, taken within the last six months against a plain white or off-white background, with a neutral expression, both eyes open, and mouth closed. Eyeglasses must come off, including prescription glasses, unless you include a signed doctor’s note explaining a medical reason.⁸ Many Connecticut post offices take passport photos on-site for $15.⁴ Pharmacies and shipping stores typically charge $10 to $18.

Fees and How to Pay

There are two separate payments, and they go to two different places. The application fee is paid to the U.S. Department of State by check or money order. The $35 execution fee is paid to the Postal Service and can go on a check, money order, or credit card.

For adults 16 and older applying for the first time or otherwise ineligible to renew:

Passport book: $130 + $35 = $165
Passport card: $30 + $35 = $65
Both book and card: $160 + $35 = $195

For children under 16:

Passport book: $100 + $35 = $135
Passport card: $15 + $35 = $50
Both book and card: $115 + $35 = $150

⁹

Optional add-ons: $60 for expedited processing and $22.05 for 1-to-3-day delivery of the finished passport.⁹ One thing to know before you choose the cheaper card: a passport card cannot be used for international air travel at all, only for land and sea travel to Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and Caribbean countries.¹⁰

At the Counter

The acceptance agent reviews your citizenship and identity documents, watches you sign the DS-11, and seals the application packet with your photo, photocopies, and payment before shipping it to a passport processing center. Your original citizenship document goes in the packet and is returned later by separate mail.⁶ From that point, everything is in the State Department’s hands.

Bringing a Child

Children under 16 must apply in person every time on Form DS-11; they cannot renew.¹ Both parents or legal guardians must appear with the child, along with proof of the parental relationship — a birth certificate, adoption decree, or custody order.¹¹

If one parent cannot be there, the absent parent completes Form DS-3053 (Statement of Consent), signed and notarized, with a photocopy of their valid photo ID attached. The consent is valid for only 90 days from the notarization date, so don’t get it signed too far ahead.¹² Applicants aged 16 and 17 can appear on their own with ID, but a parent must either attend or provide a signed statement acknowledging the application.¹³

How Long It Takes and How to Track It

Standard processing runs four to six weeks and expedited runs two to three weeks, but neither figure includes mailing. The State Department allows up to two weeks for your application to reach the processing center and up to two more weeks for the finished passport to reach you, so the realistic standard timeline is roughly eight to ten weeks door to door.¹⁴ Paying for 1-to-3-day return delivery trims the back half.

Track your application at passportstatus.state.gov using your last name, date of birth, and the last four digits of your Social Security Number. The system usually takes about 14 business days after you apply to show anything.¹⁵

If You Need It Faster

When your trip is less than three weeks away, standard expedited processing may not land in time. Connecticut has its own passport agency in Stamford, at 850 Canal Street, serving people traveling internationally within 14 calendar days or who need a foreign visa within 28 calendar days.¹⁶ Appointments are required. If you haven’t applied yet, book through the State Department’s Online Passport Appointment System. If you already applied at a post office and your date is closing in, call the National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778 (8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Eastern weekdays, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. weekends).¹⁷

For life-or-death emergencies involving a serious illness, injury, or death of an immediate family member abroad, you can request an emergency appointment even inside three business days of travel. Bring documentation of the emergency, such as a hospital letter or death certificate, plus proof of imminent travel like a flight itinerary.¹⁸

If Your Current Passport Is Lost or Stolen

Report it to the State Department right away using Form DS-64, which you can submit online, by phone at 1-877-487-2778, or by mail. Once reported, the passport is permanently invalidated. Finding it later does not make it usable again. To replace it, apply in person at a post office on Form DS-11 with the same citizenship and ID documents a first-time applicant brings, plus your completed DS-64 if you haven’t already submitted it. You pay the execution fee again.¹⁹

1
U.S. Department of State. Renew My Passport
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U.S. Embassy & Consulates. DS-11 – Application for a New Passport
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