How to get a passport?

How to renew my passport when it expires, is lost or stolen? Here’s how to renew your passport!

Valid for ten years, the biometric passport is an identity document issued to citizens by decentralized public services, a precious key that allows people to cross borders to travel abroad. You are about to take off for a foreign country and everything is ready. And to your shock, you realize that your passport is expired, lost, stolen, or has been chewed by the dog? Of course, airlines and customs will not let you board or cross the border without presenting a valid passport.

Don’t panic, renewing your passport doesn’t take much time, as long as you complete the renewal process in time. Whether it’s a passport renewal or a declaration of loss or theft, the procedure to follow differs. Here are our tips to renew your passport as soon as possible and leave for the airport with peace of mind.

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When should you renew your passport?

Since the end of June 2009, every passport issued in France is a biometric passport. An old model — obtained before June 2009 — remains valid until its expiration date, so the holder of the old passport does not have to replace it. However, it is important to note that some countries — Algeria, Australia, Brazil, Cape Verde, China, Peru, Russia, Thailand, etc. — require that the passport be valid for six months after the expected return date (if you wish to stay a little longer and apply for a visa extension): if it expires in January 2019 for a departure in February for example, be sure to renew your passport as soon as possible.

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Photo credit: Pixabay — jackmac34

Gather the necessary documents

The documents depend on the situation: adult or minor, first application or renewal, possession (or not) of a secure identity card. The sooner you gather them, the faster you will get the passport. In most cases, these include:

the passport application form,
the old passport or identity card,
a passport photo in 25 x 45 mm format,
the declaration of loss (or theft), if applicable,
a tax stamp — for a cost of €86 —,
proof of residence of less than three months (telephone bill, electricity bill, rent receipt, property title, tax notice, home insurance certificate).

The documents to provide also differ depending on whether the passport is valid or expired, whether you have an identity card or not, whether you are an adult or a minor, etc. To find out what to gather according to your personal situation, it is preferable to consult the French administration’s website.

Where to go to renew your passport?

Anywhere in France, you can apply for the renewal of your passport (or do it again) at the prefecture or at a town hall equipped with a registration station, which will require a fingerprint. Once you have filled out a cardboard pre-application form, municipal agents will check the supporting documents provided. Be careful, it should be noted that an application made at the town hall generally takes longer than at the prefecture.

What is the cost of renewing a passport?

To renew your passport, you need to buy a tax stamp whose price varies depending on age:

Adult: €86,
Minor over 15 years: €42,
Persons under 15 years: €17.

You can buy the tax stamp at a tobacco shop (note that some tobacconists are not authorized) or at a corporate tax service. It is also possible to pay for an electronic tax stamp online, on the website.

Photo credit: Pixabay — jackmac34

What are the processing times?

You cannot renew your passport on-site: the documents are produced by the National Printing Group, in Flers-en-Etrebieux (59). An interactive voice server (34 00) allows you to inquire about the processing time depending on the request.

Beware of passport delays: they generally vary from 2 weeks to more than 12 weeks depending on the influx and size of the prefecture. This is the official deadline, but in reality, in large cities, a week is sometimes enough. Requested just before a trip to Canada, we obtained it just in time in seven days, received the day before departure…

Collecting the passport

To collect the passport, once again, it is necessary to go to the site. No public institution takes the risk of sending this document by mail, and that is completely normal: what would happen if the passport were lost on the way and never arrived at your home? Generally, the town hall where the passport renewal application was made can send an SMS to notify that the document is available. From there, you just need to go and pick it up on-site. Passports must be collected within three months and will be destroyed by the administration after this period. Don’t let the days go by, it would be a shame to have to refund €86…