Why Do I Need to Provide Identification to Replace My Stolen Passport?

As part of the process to replace your stolen passport, you will need to appear in person at a Passport Acceptance Facility. It’s the responsibility of the Passport Acceptance Agent to make sure you are who you say you are! Most people who are applying for a first-time adult passport or a replacement for a lost, stolen, or damaged passport use a driver’s license for their proof of identity. Since your driver’s license is gone with the wind, you’ll need to find a different form of identification.

Alternative Proof of Identity

If you’ve lost both your passport and your driver’s license, you’re going to need to prove your identity in a different way. There are two different ways to submit proof of identity to get a passport. The easiest way is to provide a document that’s considered “primary identification.” This would be a government-issued document that has your name and photograph. If you don’t have any other primary identification, you can bring multiple items with your name to serve as “secondary identification.”

Primary Identification to Replace Your Stolen Passport

You can use one of the following items as primary identification instead of a driver’s license.

• Expired or cancelled US Passport. Do you still have your previous US passport? Great! You can use this to prove both your identity and your US citizenship. But keep in mind this should be a relatively recent passport, so the photo will still look like you. Don’t try to use the passport you got when you were in elementary school!
• Passport Card. If you’ve got a valid or expired US passport card, this is a great way to prove your identity.
• Valid Military ID. Are you an active member of the US Military, or a military dependent? You can use your government-issued military ID card.
• Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship. Since these documents include your photo, you can use them as proof of identity as well as proof of US citizenship.
• Government Employee ID. Do you work for the federal, state, or local government? You can use your government employee ID badge to apply for your replacement passport.

Secondary Identification Options

Your driver’s license was stolen. You don’t have an old passport to submit, or any of the other primary identification options. What do you do now? Gather as many documents as you can to serve as secondary proof of identity. You’ll want to look for items that list your name. The more official the organization that issued the document, the better. Ideally, you also want documents that show your photo or other personally identifiable information like your birth date. Here are some ideas of the kinds of documents you can use for secondary identification:

• Social Security card
• Employee ID
• Professional license (such as a medical license or beautician’s license)
• Trusted Traveler Card (Global Entry, NEXUS, or SENTRI)
• Student ID
• Learner’s permit or temporary driver’s license
• Expired driver’s license
• Voter registration card
• Medicare or health insurance card
• Welfare card
• Foreign passport (even expired)
• Selective Service (draft) registration
• Union membership card
• Membership card for a club, gym, or social organization
• Credit card or bank records for the past year
• Copy of your lease or mortgage
• Income tax records or W-2 forms for the past year
• School diplomas or yearbooks
• Newspaper or magazine articles that show your name and photo
• Marriage certificate, divorce decree, or your childrens’ birth certificates
• Baptismal certificate or other religious records

Try to bring as many items as you can – we recommend at least five! You’ll need to bring the original documents as well as photocopies of each item.

The post Proof of Identity Options if Your Passport and License are Stolen appeared first on G3Passports.

When you apply for your first US passport, you will need to go to a Passport Acceptance Agent to have your identity and citizenship verified.  You’ll need to show official identification that displays your full name and photo.  If you have a valid, in-state driver’s license, that’s all you’ll need to prove your identity!  You can also show one of the following cards instead as primary proof of your identity:

• Valid US Military ID, or military dependent ID
• Valid in-state non-driver identification card
• Expired, undamaged US passport
• Government employee ID with photo
• Certificate of Naturalization or Certificate of Citizenship, with your photo

What if your driver’s license is issued by a different state?

Let’s say you have a valid driver’s license issued by North Carolina, but you are applying for your passport at a Passport Acceptance Facility in Virginia.  Since your driver’s license was issued out of state, you’ll need to submit a secondary proof of identity.  If you have another form of identification that shows your name, date of birth, and photo, you might be able to use just that ID to support your out of state driver’s license.  But just to be safe, we recommend you bring as many forms of secondary identification as possible.

Secondary Proof of Identity

Don’t have a driver’s license or other state-issued ID?  Or perhaps you have a driver’s license, but it’s a temporary license, or it’s expired.  You’ll need to show a combination of secondary IDs.

There isn’t a hard and fast rule about how many forms of secondary identification you’ll need to show, but we recommend that you try to bring at least five.  Look for documents that show your full name.  It’s also good if the documents include your photo or date of birth.  The more official the issuing organization, the better!

Here are some suggestions of secondary ID options:

• Social Security card
• Learner’s permit or temporary driver’s license
• Expired driver’s license
• Voter registration card
• Employee ID
• Student ID
• Foreign passport (even expired)
• Selective Service (draft) registration
• Medicare or health insurance card
• Welfare card
• Union membership card
• Professional license (such as nurse, beautician, etc.)
• Membership card for a club or social organization
• Credit card or bank records for the past year
• Copy of lease or mortgage
• Income tax records or W-2 forms for the past year
• School diplomas or yearbooks
• Baptismal certificate or other religious records

December is New Passport month on the G3Passports.com blog!  All month we’ll be focusing on topics relating to first time passports for adults.  If there are any subjects you’d like us to address, tell us in the comments!

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