Child passport fees include standard fees, extra fees to add pages for frequent travelers, and renewal fees. In addition, expediting the process or ordering an emergency passport greatly affects the cost of a child passport. Some of these fees are optional or can be avoided with adequate planning. Another factor that can affect the cost of a child passport is whether the deal is a scam. Passport scams are common, often because travelers are fooled by inexpensive prices or promises of unusual benefits.
The cost of a child passport is affected by the size of the booklet. If the child is a frequent traveler, his or her guardian can usually request a larger passport than is standard. The fees for adding pages can sometimes be significant, but are less than completely replacing the passport once the pages are filled. While frequent travelers benefit the most from these offers, the upfront cost can be daunting.
Passport renewal prices are often roughly the same as getting a new passport. The difference is that the applicant usually is not charged an execution or processing fee. This varies depending on the country the child is from; some countries always charge an extra fee to renew passports for minors.
Expediting significantly affects the cost of a child passport and the amount of time it takes to receive the passport. Paying to get a child passport made faster than normal is usually very expensive, but well worth it if the child needs the document in less than one month. Depending on the country, the passport might be able to be made within as little time as one week.
The cost of a child passport can increase significantly if it is being acquired on an emergency or temporary basis. Extra processing fees often combine with the normal cost of a passport. Additionally, the potential cost of having to purchase a regular passport soon after purchasing a temporary one can increase the total cost of utilizing a temporary or emergency passport.
Some fraudulent passport sellers offer child passports at unusually low or high prices. For example, a passport seller might offer a family discount or tempt potential buyers with other seemingly good deals. In other cases, people who are selling scam passports may ask for an inordinately large amount of money for special services, such as diplomatic benefits. While there are many different types of passport scams, most of them involve the offering of unfair benefits or deals.