How long is a US passport valid?
The length depends on one fact: your age on the day the passport was issued. The calculator turns your issue date into an expiration date.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
2026 rules
When does your passport expire?
Expires on
October 17, 2028
| Validity | 10 years |
| How to renew | By mail (DS-82), online if 25+ |
A U.S. passport issued to someone aged 16 or older is valid for 10 years; one issued to a child under 16 is valid for 5 years. The passport card follows exactly the same rule as the book. The line is the age on the issue date, not at application, which can matter for a teenager who applies just before a birthday: two passports issued on May 4, 2026, one to a 15-year-old and one to a 16-year-old, expire on May 4, 2031 and May 4, 2036. Children’s passports cannot be renewed; adult passports issued at 16 or older can be renewed by mail for 15 years after issue, and online within a year before and five years after expiry. In cost per year of validity, an adult’s first book costs $16.50 a year and a child’s $27. Passports with limited validity, issued in emergencies, expire sooner and should be replaced with full-validity ones.
One rule, two lengths
The age that counts is the age on the issue date. From 16, the State Department issues a 10-year passport; under 16, a 5-year passport. The mini-calculator at the top takes your issue date and that age, and returns the expiration date and the renewal route you will have when it comes, by mail, online or in person. For a passport issued on May 4, 2026, the difference between 15 and 16 is five years of validity: May 4, 2031 against May 4, 2036.
What each length means for renewal
An adult passport, issued at 16 or older, can be renewed by mail for 15 years after issue, which gives five years of grace after a 10-year passport expires. Online renewal opens a year before expiry and closes five years after, for holders aged 25 or more. A child passport never renews: every new passport is a fresh application in person, with both parents or the consent form. A teenager whose last passport was a child one must apply in person at 16 or 17, and only the passport after that can be renewed.
Validity is not the same as usability
A passport valid until a given date is not usable everywhere until that date. Many countries require six months left after arrival, and the Schengen area three months after departure. A 10-year passport therefore offers about nine and a half usable years for travelers to those destinations, and a child’s 5-year passport about four and a half. The validity checker applies each rule to your dates.
Your renewal calendar
Online renewal opens
December 17, 2026
| Too short for 6-month countries from | June 17, 2027 |
| Mail a routine renewal by | April 8, 2027 |
| Online renewal closes | December 16, 2032 |
Cost per year of validity
Because adult and child passports differ in both price and length, the yearly cost differs. A first adult book at $165 spreads to $16.50 per year; a child’s book at $135 to $27 per year. Renewals by mail are cheaper per year again, at $130 for ten years. Families who time a teenager’s application just after the 16th birthday double its validity for $30 more.
Passports that last less
Some passports are issued with limited validity on purpose: after multiple losses or damage, when documents were incomplete before urgent travel, or as emergency passports abroad, which are purple and valid one year or less. The State Department explains on its limited-validity page how to obtain a full-validity passport and when no fee is due if you act within a year. Reporting a passport lost or stolen ends its validity immediately, whatever date it shows.
Renewing does not extend the old passport
A renewal is a new passport with a new issue date and a new 10-year period. Time left on the old one is not carried over, and the old book is canceled, returned to you by mail after a DS-82 renewal, or kept but invalid after an online renewal. Renewing early therefore shortens the total time covered by the two passports, which is worth knowing when deciding between renewing now and waiting until the online window opens.
Where to read the dates
Both dates are on the data page, the page with your photo: date of issue and date of expiration, written day, month and year. The card shows them on the front. When in doubt about which passport is current, the most recently issued one is, since a renewal cancels the previous book.