Short answer: apply online on GOV.UK for £66.50, or with a paper form for £80. You need your child's old passport and a new photo. If your child is under 12, someone who has known you for 2 years confirms their identity online after you apply (GOV.UK: Renew a child passport). A child passport lasts 5 years (GOV.UK: Get a passport for your child).
GOV.UK's child passport pages checked on 3 November 2026. Fees and rules change, so check the linked GOV.UK page before you pay.
| Your child's situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Under 16 with a British passport, same name and details | Renew it (this page) |
| Name or other details have changed | Apply for a new passport, with the deed poll and everyone with parental responsibility agreeing (GOV.UK: Change the name on a child passport) |
| Lost, stolen or damaged passport | Apply for a replacement; it always needs someone to confirm their identity |
| Never had a British passport | Apply for a first child passport (GOV.UK: Apply for a first child passport) |
| 16, or turning 16 in the next 3 weeks | Renew as an adult instead (GOV.UK: Renew or replace your adult passport) |
| Passport | Online | Paper form |
|---|---|---|
| Adult (16 and over), 34 pages | £102 | £115.50 |
| Child (under 16), 34 pages | £66.50 | £80 |
| Adult, 54-page frequent traveller | £116 | £129.50 |
| Child, 54-page frequent traveller | £80.50 | £94 |
Fees from GOV.UK: Passport fees. A 1 week Fast Track appointment for a child passport costs £156.50 (GOV.UK: Get a passport urgently). Don't book travel until you have the new passport: it has a new number (GOV.UK: Renew a child passport).
Only children under 12 need it online, and children 12 and over only if they no longer look like their old photo on a paper form (GOV.UK: Renew a child passport). Online, the person you name confirms it from an email, which takes about 10 minutes: they must be 18 or over, live in the UK, have a current UK or Irish passport, have known you for at least 2 years, and work in or be retired from a recognised profession (GOV.UK: Confirm someone's identity online). They can't be a relative. On a paper form they sign section 10 and the back of one photo instead: see who can countersign a passport photo.
Get the form at a Post Office with Passport Check and Send, or from the Passport Adviceline. Fill in sections 1, 2, 3, 4 and 9; children 12 to 15 also sign section 6. It costs £80 and takes longer than online (GOV.UK: Renew a child passport). The Post Office can check the form and send it for £16 more: see renewing at the Post Office.
The same GOV.UK rules as an adult's, with two exceptions: children under 6 don't have to look straight at the camera or keep a plain expression, and babies under 1 can have their eyes closed (GOV.UK: Get a passport photo).
More: how to take a baby passport photo at home
Or make it at home. Picproved costs £5.99 (free while we launch) for one person's photo in every size you need, and it checks the size, background, head size and face rules before you save. The office still makes the final decision. Make your United Kingdom Baby and child passport (online) photo
