Parents can sometimes get caught in the trap of thinking that their small child is immune to the law and that they do not have to worry about silly things like passports. If there is an international family trip planned in the near future, that philosophy is going to have to be rethought. However, there is no need to hit the panic button, because an expedited childrens passport is all that is needed.

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, children and infants are subject to specific passport law. For example, as of February 1st, 2008, all U.S. citizens under the age of sixteen must obtain written consent from both parents or guardians to obtain a passport. This law is designed to minimize international child custody disputes. The theory behind this law is that if one parent is trying to sneak a minor out of the country, it will be impossible to do so without the other parent finding out.

This law adds an extra step in the passport application process for a child, which in turn adds an extra step in obtaining an expedited child passport. Most child passports are new passport applications, and new applications are inherently more time consuming than renewal applications.

The child must have his or her photo taken prior to applying in person at an application center. One-hour photo stores in pharmacies or supermarkets are often then best and least expensive places to obtain passport photos. When pressed for time, these one-hour photo stores are by far the best place to get express passport photos because they can crop the photos to the requisite specifications immediately on site.

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.

A normal passport will take about 6-8 weeks to get back. If the time frame that is left in inside of that window, the parents are going to get stuck paying a fee of $60 to have the passport back within three weeks. There are other services that can be provided at a higher cost if that time frame is still not quick enough.

When traveling abroad, it is best to have all the ducks in a row so that there are no issues at the last second. However, it is perfectly understandable to see how a child’s passport could slip the mind of the parents that they would need to get an expedited minor passport. When this happens, know that there are several measures in place to make the express USA passport process as easy as it can be with the added pressure of a short turnaround time.