November 21, 2016
We understand that our lives are very busy and items can become stolen or misplaced. However, it is very important that you keep your passport in a safe, dry area and that you can locate your passport when you need it. If you lose your passport, not only will the application process be more complicated, you may be issued a passport with a limited period of validity. People who lose their passports more than once generally have to apply, pay for, and interview for a new passport every year instead of once every ten years.
Even if your passport has expired, you will need to present it to the consular official when you apply for a new one. If you cannot present your previous passport when you submit the form DS-11 (application for a passport), you will also be required to present the form DS-64 (Report of Lost or Stolen Passport) to the Embassy staff at the time of your interview. Embassy staff will only accept forms that are completed online. So, you will not be able to complete these forms at the time of your interview. Please refer to our website for additional information: Here. Link in Spanish.
U.S. passports are some of the most powerful travel documents available and are eagerly sought by those seeking to enter the United States as well as other countries where no visa is required for U.S. citizens. Therefore, in order to protect our citizens from having their identities used to do harm, a list of lost and stolen U.S. passports is shared daily with the international police organization, INTERPOL. If an applicant has not lost two or more passports within a 10-year period, they may be issued a full-validity passport. However, an applicant who loses a second passport within a 10-year period will be issued a passport limited to one-year of validity. If consular officials believe that there are serious fraud indicators in an application for a replacement passport, that official may further limit the validity of the passport.
