The Department of State is conducting special passport acceptance fairs across the United States in September and October, where people can apply for passports in person, the department said in a Sept. 12 statement.
“These events are for first-time customers and children who must apply in person using Form DS-11,” the department stated. “Adults who are eligible to renew a passport using Form DS-82 can submit the application online or by mail at any time.”
In total, 64 events are listed on the department’s website—48 for September and 16 for October.
In September, the fairs have been scheduled for between Sept. 12 and Sept. 30 in Puerto Rico and across 16 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.
The fairs for next month, scheduled between Oct. 3 and 29, will be held in 13 states: California, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.
Some places accept applications on evenings and weekends, while certain locations require appointments to be scheduled.
“Passport acceptance facilities only offer routine and expedited service. The facilities do not issue passports,” the department clarified. “Each facility mails your application to the U.S. Department of State.”
Currently, routine processing of a passport takes anywhere from four to six weeks. Expedited processing cuts it down to two to three weeks.
Applying for a passport for the first time as an adult typically requires filling out an application form, taking photocopies of citizenship evidence and photo ID, and submitting these documents together with the necessary fees at an authorized passport acceptance facility.
“If you need a passport for urgent travel in less than two weeks, make an appointment at one of our 26 passport agencies or centers,” the department said.
A passport agency or center is different from a passport acceptance facility, which can include post offices, local government offices, and libraries. In contrast, each passport agency and center is run directly by the State Department.
For people who apply via mail, “mailing times are not included in processing times. Consider the total time it will take to receive your passport when you are booking travel,” the department stated.
“It may take two weeks for your application to get to us, and two weeks for you to get your passport after we mail it,” the department stated.
The State Department has taken steps to ease the passport renewal experience.
In October 2024, the department announced that U.S. citizens could renew their passports online rather than by following the mail-in process that could take several weeks.
“By offering this online alternative to the traditional paper application process, the Department is embracing digital transformation to offer the most efficient and convenient passport renewal experience possible,” then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement at the time.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has sought to require each person’s correct sex to be listed in passports.
On Jan. 20, President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation mandating that government-issued documents, such as passports, use the sex of an individual rather than their gender identity.
In February, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts filed a lawsuit on behalf of seven plaintiffs—five who identified as transgender and two who identified as nonbinary. The lawsuit was filed to prohibit the Trump administration from barring use of the “X” designation on passports for individuals self-identifying as neither male nor female.
In April, District Judge Julia Kobick issued an injunction blocking the State Department from enforcing this sex/gender identity passport policy against the plaintiffs, which was later expanded to cover other Americans identifying as transgender or nonbinary.
On Sept. 4, a federal appeals court upheld the decision, with a three-judge panel ruling that the Trump administration failed to meet its burden to secure a stay on the district court block.
In a statement to The Epoch Times, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly criticized the appeals court’s ruling, calling it “an attempt to thwart President Trump’s agenda and push radical gender ideology that defies biological truth.”
“There are only two genders, there is no such thing as gender ‘X,’ and the President was given a mandate by the American people to restore common sense to the federal government,” she said.
Aldgra Fredly contributed to this report.
