Uh oh — when that thief grabbed your bag and ran, he got both your passport and your driver’s license! You’re going to need to have proof of your identity in order to replace your stolen passport. Are you out of luck if your driver’s license was stolen, too? Don’t worry! You have other options for proof of identity to replace your stolen or lost passport.
Why Do I Need to Provide Identification to Replace My Stolen Passport?
As part of the process to replace your stolen passport, you will need to appear in person at a Passport Acceptance Facility. It’s the responsibility of the Passport Acceptance Agent to make sure you are who you say you are! Most people who are applying for a first-time adult passport or a replacement for a lost, stolen, or damaged passport use a driver’s license for their proof of identity. Since your driver’s license is gone with the wind, you’ll need to find a different form of identification.
Alternative Proof of Identity
If you’ve lost both your passport and your driver’s license, you’re going to need to prove your identity in a different way. There are two different ways to submit proof of identity to get a passport. The easiest way is to provide a document that’s considered “primary identification.” This would be a government-issued document that has your name and photograph. If you don’t have any other primary identification, you can bring multiple items with your name to serve as “secondary identification.”
Primary Identification to Replace Your Stolen Passport
You can use one of the following items as primary identification instead of a driver’s license.
- Expired or cancelled US Passport. Do you still have your previous US passport? Great! You can use this to prove both your identity and your US citizenship. But keep in mind this should be a relatively recent passport, so the photo will still look like you. Don’t try to use the passport you got when you were in elementary school!
- Passport Card. If you’ve got a valid or expired US passport card, this is a great way to prove your identity.
- Valid Military ID. Are you an active member of the US Military, or a military dependent? You can use your government-issued military ID card.
- Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship. Since these documents include your photo, you can use them as proof of identity as well as proof of US citizenship.
- Government Employee ID. Do you work for the federal, state, or local government? You can use your government employee ID badge to apply for your replacement passport.
Secondary Identification Options
Your driver’s license was stolen. You don’t have an old passport to submit, or any of the other primary identification options. What do you do now? Gather as many documents as you can to serve as secondary proof of identity. You’ll want to look for items that list your name. The more official the organization that issued the document, the better. Ideally, you also want documents that show your photo or other personally identifiable information like your birth date. Here are some ideas of the kinds of documents you can use for secondary identification:
- Social Security card
- Employee ID
- Professional license (such as a medical license or beautician’s license)
- Trusted Traveler Card (Global Entry, NEXUS, or SENTRI)
- Student ID
- Learner’s permit or temporary driver’s license
- Expired driver’s license
- Voter registration card
- Medicare or health insurance card
- Welfare card
- Foreign passport (even expired)
- Selective Service (draft) registration
- Union membership card
- Membership card for a club, gym, or social organization
- Credit card or bank records for the past year
- Copy of your lease or mortgage
- Income tax records or W-2 forms for the past year
- School diplomas or yearbooks
- Newspaper or magazine articles that show your name and photo
- Marriage certificate, divorce decree, or your childrens’ birth certificates
- Baptismal certificate or other religious records
Try to bring as many items as you can – we recommend at least five! You’ll need to bring the original documents as well as photocopies of each item.