Document

United States Passports Moving to Single-Sized Passport Book

The U.S. Department of State currently issues two passport book sizes--a 26-page book and a 50-page book. A determination was made to shift the U.S. passport book to a single-si...

PDF version FederalRegister.gov

Department of State

[Public Notice: 12997]

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The U.S. Department of State currently issues two passport book sizes—a 26-page book and a 50-page book. A determination was made to shift ( printed page 21071) the U.S. passport book to a single-sized, 38-page passport book, with the release of the next redesign.

DATES:

Submit comments by June 22, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments by the following method: Comment on this notice by going to www.Regulations.gov. You can search for the document by entering “Docket Number: “DOS-2026-0496” in the Search field. Then click the “Comment Now” button and complete the comment form.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Amber Long, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Passport Services, Modernization and Systems Liaison, tel.: (202) 485-6520, email: AskPPTInternationalAffairs@state.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Currently, the Next Generation Passport (NGP) is available in 26-page and 50-page book sizes. Previously, the legacy ePassport was available in a 28-page and 52-page book. The U.S passport Series B is being redesigned for an anticipated rollout in 2028, and this will include a shift to a single-sized book with 38 pages. All passport book types will change with the exception of the Emergency Passport, which will remain a 12-page book.

In 2024, a feasibility study was conducted on the impacts of moving to a single sized passport book. The results of the study determined a 38-page book would increase efficiencies and reduce waste within the production of the passport at the Government Publishing Office (GPO) and within the issuance process at the U.S. Department of State. On average, 92 percent of customers applying for a passport book request the 26-page book. Of the 8 percent of customers receiving the 50-page book, most do so due to a policy practice to issue 50-page books to special-issuance and overseas applicants. In other words, while some frequent international travelers, U.S. citizens residing abroad, and special-issuance passport holders will need to renew more frequently once the 50-page option becomes unavailable, the Department expects those applicants to make up a small percentage of all passport applicants. Switching to a single-sized, 38-page book will allow more visa pages for the majority of applicants. Planned enhancements to the Department's Online Passport Renewal (OPR) platform that will allow overseas applicants to renew their passports online are also expected to introduce new efficiencies for those customers and may mitigate this burden.

The Department seeks input from stakeholders on the potential burdens of eliminating the 50-page book as an option. The Department appreciates and values all feedback and will give due consideration to the comments received. However, at this time, the Department does not plan to respond to the comments in the Federal Register .

Matthew D. Pierce,

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Passport Services, Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State.

[FR Doc. 2026-07670 Filed 4-17-26; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4710-06-P

Legal Citation

Federal Register Citation

Use this for formal legal and research references to the published document.

91 FR 21070

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“United States Passports Moving to Single-Sized Passport Book,” thefederalregister.org (April 20, 2026), https://thefederalregister.org/documents/2026-07670/united-states-passports-moving-to-single-sized-passport-book.