It seems that many people have the misconception that very young children and infants do not need passports. This is simply not true, and this misinformation could result in a child being denied travel at an airport. This type of misinformation often results in parents scrambling to get their child a passport at the last minute. Luckily, the U.S. State Departments provides channels to secure an expedited passport for a child.

As with any type of passport, it is important to become familiar with U.S. passport law before acquiring a child passport. First of all, passports are required for any non-government international travel by U.S. citizens. This includes all citizens, even children and infants.

However, there are some amendments to the law that have been added specific to children. The most important of these is that any child that is not at least sixteen years old will have to have written consent from both parents before a passport can be obtained. This law is in place to prevent a parent from unknowingly leaving the country without the second parent’s permission.

This special passport law means that an additional step has been added to the process, but other than that, the process is pretty similar to adults. Once the consent forms have been signed, the application process will go as a new passport application would. Just make sure that the consent form is properly done so that there will be no snags as the process moves forward.

The first step for a child at that point, just as it would be for an adult, is to get a valid passport photo taken. Because of the rush, it is probably best to utilize the one-hour photo shops that do passport photos. Let them know specifically that the photo is for an express passport and they make it the proper size.

The dual-parent consent form must also be signed prior to filling out the application. This can be difficult if both parents are not in the same area. This is often the most difficult aspect of obtaining an expedited child passport. However, if both parents are able to sign the consent form, then the child’s passport application becomes very much the same as an adult passport application.

The U.S. Department of State currently estimates that a normal passport application will take four to six weeks to process. Any child that needs a passport in less than six weeks should most definitely apply for an expedited passport. The State Department estimates that an expedited passport will arrive in two to three weeks.

It is always best to plan well ahead of time when dealing with international travel. Expediting a passport can be a hassle, especially with a child. Luckily, an expedited children passport only requires one extra step and there are express American passport services out there to help. If both parents are able to sign the consent form, it is usually not that unreasonable to get the passport in time. Still, it would be much easier in the long run to stay prepared and keep everyone’s passports up to date.

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