My Passport Is Full, What Do I Do Now?
Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com — E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com
6/1/2009 – My Passport Is Full, What Do I Do Now?
A question I have been asked quite a few times is what do you do when your Passport’s pages are all filled up.
The answer to this question is…well it depends on what country has issued your Passport.  I am about to run out of pages in my Passport, which is issued in The United States, where I am entitled to have extra pages added to my current valid Passport.
In The United States if you run out of pages, you simply apply for new pages to be added to your Passport. When you have less than four pages left in your Passport you fill out a DS-4085 form, and either mail it in to your nearest Passport Office, or drop it off.  There is no fee for extra pages (unless you require expedited service).
In countries such as New Zealand and Canada, once your Passport is out of pages you simply need to apply for a new Passport.
In the United Kingdom, once you run out of pages, you must apply for a new Passport, but you are eligible to apply for a 48 page Passport, allowing you more Visa pages to be stamped, thus extending the life of the Passport.
From Australia and travel often? The standard Aussie Passport is 32 pages, however you are able to apply for the “Frequent Traveller Passport” with 64 pages. The Frequent Traveller Passport has an extra fee, but can be worth the cost difference if you travel frequently.
Since there is no standardized answer to the common question, you should consult with the Passport Office of the country that issues your Passport.
Below is a photo of my Passport waiting at an empty Northwest Airlines/KLM station to check in for a flight.
Happy Flying!
–Click Image Below To Enlarge–
I have a relatively empty US passport today, but in March I leave on a trip around the world. I anticipate that I may run out of pages along the way. Since I have more than 4 remaining pages now, will they deny my request for more pages? Can I get pages put in at an Embassy somewhere overseas? I remember reading that the US is one of those places where, if I were to lose my passport, a new one cannot be issued at a overseas Embassy, and I must return to the US to get a replacement. Which brings me to another incredible option: getting a legit duplicate passport! Who knew it was allowed? I found out over at The Art of Non-Conformity.
I believe if you are travelling outside of the US, and need additional pages added to your passport, a simple trip to the local US Embassy will solve the the problem.
Additional pages can be added at US Embassys overseas for free.
For specific information as to the hours of operation or to schedule an appointment, visit the website of the US Embassy in the country you are currently in.
Well, the embassy in Colombia now charges $82 for the additional pages. So much for free services!
No such thing as free when adding new pages for US passport:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html
Tom,
At the time I wrote about adding pages to a U.S. Passport, in early January 2009, additional pages were free. The fees for adding pages were added in July 2010, a year and a half after I wrote about additional pages.
Happy Flying!
-Fish
I have a US passport and I’m out of the country at the moment. The longest I will be back in the US is for 9 days so I don’t think there is enough time for me to request extra pages (unless they mail them to you, which I doubt). Do you know if I can use the back pages that say “endorsements” or only the ones that say “visas”?
Melissa,
Check your email, I sent you one on 5-February-2012
Happy Flying!
-Fish
I have the same situation as Melissa, I am only in the US for a week and have discovered my passport pages are used except for some endorsement pages. Can I use them and then get more pages at an Embassy in Europe.
Nicole
Nicole,
Some US Consulates/Embasssys handle passport issues in house, some do not. You need to contact them and find out.
Happy Flying!
-Fish
Looks like you can no longer get extra pages for your US passport:
https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/news/visa-pages-no-longer-issued.html