State Department Proposes Expanding Online Passport Renewal Overseas

The U.S. Department of State has proposed expanding its Online Passport Renewal (OPR) program to qualified applicants located in foreign countries, and removing the requirement that an applicant’s most recently issued passport have one year or less of remaining validity. The proposed rule, “Passports: Expanding Online Passport Renewal Overseas,” was published in the Federal Register of Friday, August 28, 2026 (Vol. 91, No. 166, Proposed Rules, p. 55505), under Public Notice 13104 and RIN 1400–AF97, and would amend 22 CFR Part 51.

The proposal consolidates the requirements for persons applying by mail and online, both in the United States and overseas, into a single section 51.21. It also makes two minor technical corrections to section 51.8(b), changing “on-line” to “online” for consistency. The Department of State will accept public comments until October 27, 2026.

Background of the program

The Department first introduced online passport applications through its OPR platform in 2022, following the final rule “Passports: Option for Passport Applicants Eligible to Apply by Mail for Renewal of Passports to Apply On-Line” (Public Notice 11609, 86 FR 72521, December 22, 2021). That rule restricted eligibility to applicants located within the United States whose most recent passport had one year or less of remaining validity, and the eligible pool has not been expanded since.

Federal law (22 U.S.C. 211a et seq.) authorizes the Secretary of State to issue passports, with the President’s authority delegated by Executive Order 11295 of August 5, 1966. Because the current restrictions are embedded in regulation, they can only be removed through rulemaking. The Department states it has always intended to make OPR more widely available, including to eligible persons abroad and to those with more than a year of validity remaining.

Scope and projected impact

The online process lets eligible applicants abroad submit applications, pay fees, and upload photos entirely online, eliminating the traditional requirement of two in-person visits to a consular post and removing the need to transfer physical applications to a domestic passport agency. The Department projects for fiscal year 2027:

• 10,509,576 total DS–82 renewal applicants, of which about 6,279,511 are expected to use OPR.
• The overseas expansion could add up to 220,000 additional OPR applicants in FY27.
• Total estimated annual cost savings of $148,685,935, including photo, postage, travel, and lost-wage savings.

The Department notes that expanding eligibility to applicants with a lost or stolen passport would require major system changes, and that it lacks the technological capability to support renewals for passports issued more than 15 years ago, which it plans to pursue in a future rulemaking. OPR will be deployed overseas in phases, with an updated list of eligible countries maintained at travel.state.gov/renewonline.

Regulatory and privacy considerations

The rule is designated as economically significant under Executive Order 12866, with a beneficial impact likely to exceed $100 million, and is treated as a deregulatory action under Executive Order 14192. The Department certifies it will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities, and that it will not affect the environment, tribes, or federalism.

The Department reiterates that passport applications, whether mailed or submitted online, are processed on controlled workstations accessed only by authorized employees, with data encrypted and records protected under the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a). The rule relates to OMB Control Number 1405–0020, and the Department requests public comment on time burdens encountered during the application process.

Why it matters

For the roughly 220,000 U.S. citizens abroad who renew passports each year, the change would remove a significant logistical hurdle—securing consular appointments and traveling to embassies—by allowing fully online submission. It also frees overseas consular staff to focus on complex citizenship cases and special citizen services, while shifting document collection and preparation to applicants as a one-time responsibility.

Source: Federal Register, Vol. 91, No. 166, August 28, 2026, Proposed Rules, p. 55505 (official reference: FR Doc. 2026–17655; RIN 1400–AF97; Public Notice 13104).