Passport expediting services: what you pay for
Courier and expediting companies carry applications to passport agencies. They do not set fees, process passports or replace the State Department.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
2026 rules
How much of a quote is government fees?
You would pay in total
$565.87
| Government fees, expedited + 1-3 day delivery | $216.87 |
| Private service fee on top | $349 |
| Refunded by the State Department if late | only the $60 expedite fee |
A private passport expediter, or courier, is a company that takes your completed application to a passport agency for you. It does not process passports: the U.S. Department of State does, on the same published timeline, at the same fees. For an expedited renewal by mail with 1-3 day delivery the government fees are $216.87; at a passport agency by appointment, $190. Whatever a company charges comes on top of those amounts. The State Department refunds only its own $60 expedite fee when it misses its expedited timeframe, never fees paid to courier companies. It also warns that the only authorized place to renew online is opr.travel.state.gov, that nobody else may sign and submit your online application, that agency appointments are free and a request to pay for one should be considered fraudulent, and that it may not honor appointments booked through third parties. This site sells no expediting service.
What the government charges, line by line
Every passport, however it reaches the State Department, carries the same government fees. A renewal book is $130; expediting adds $60; 1-3 day delivery adds $26.87. A first passport or a child’s passport adds the $35 execution fee at the facility. The mini-calculator above takes a price you were quoted, the service fee before government fees, and shows the whole bill: the government part, which you pay in any case, and what the company adds on top.
What only the State Department does
Three things cannot be bought from anyone else. Processing, which follows the published range of 4 to 6 weeks routine or 2 to 3 weeks expedited. Appointments at its 26 agencies and centers, which are free. And the refund of the $60 expedite fee when its expedited commitment of 15 business days is missed. A company can carry documents, check that the forms are complete and wait in line; it cannot change any of those three.
The warning signs the State Department lists
Its own pages name several. A site that offers to “renew online” outside opr.travel.state.gov. A company that asks you to let it sign or submit your online application. A request to pay for an agency appointment. An offer of an appointment booked through a third party, which the Department may not honor. A web address ending in .com, .us or .org presented as official. If your personal information has been compromised, the Department points to IdentityTheft.gov, and you can report an incident to the Federal Trade Commission or your state consumer protection office.
Routine or expedited for this trip?
Best choice if you mail it today
Expedite (+$86.87)
| Routine, latest arrival | December 26, 2026 (tight) |
| Expedited + delivery, latest | November 24, 2026 (in time) |
The routes that cost nothing extra
Before paying for help, check the official routes. With more than six weeks before travel, routine service is enough, and online renewal skips the outbound mail entirely. With three to six weeks, expedited service plus 1-3 day delivery is designed for that window. Inside 14 days, or 28 with a foreign visa, an agency appointment issues the passport directly. For a life-or-death emergency of an immediate family member abroad, a separate emergency appointment exists.
Reading a quote before you sign
Quotes from expediting companies are often shown “plus government fees”. That wording is accurate but easy to misread: a service priced at a few hundred dollars becomes a bill of the service price plus $216.87 for an expedited renewal with fast delivery, and more for a first passport, which adds the $35 execution fee. Ask three questions. Which government fees will be paid, and to whom, since the State Department part must still go to the U.S. Department of State? What happens to the service fee if the passport is not issued in time, given that the Department refunds only its own expedite fee? And who signs the application, since an online renewal must be completed by you alone? Enter the quoted price in the calculator above to see the real total before deciding, and keep a copy of what you agreed.
Why this site does not sell the service
A calculator that ends in a sales pitch has a reason to make the official route look slow. This one only adds up published fees and times, from the State Department’s chart and processing page, so its dates are the government’s own and its totals are what you would pay without any intermediary.