SUPPORTING STATEMENT
FOR PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT SUBMISSION
Application for a U.S. Passport for Eligible Individuals: Correction, Name Change to Passport Issued 1 Year Ago or Less, and Limited Passport Replacement
OMB Number 1405-0160
Form DS-5504
Why is this collection necessary and what are the legal statutes that allow this?
The Application for a U.S. Passport for Eligible Individuals: Correction, Name Change to Passport Issued 1 Year Ago or Less, and Limited Passport Replacement (DS-5504) is used by current passport holders who are eligible to re-apply for a passport at no cost. A passport holder is eligible to re-apply for a new passport using the DS-5504 if: a) the passport holder’s name has changed within the first year of the issuance of the passport; b) the passport holder’s descriptive information on the data page of the passport is incorrect; c) the passport holder wishes to obtain a fully valid passport after obtaining a full-fee passport with a limited validity of two years or less.
Under 22 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 211a et seq. and Executive Order 11295 (August 5, 1966), the Secretary of State has authority to issue U.S. passports to U.S. citizens and non-citizen nationals. When the bearer of a valid U.S. passport applies for a new passport book and/or passport card with corrected personal data or when the bearer of a limited validity passport applies for a fully valid replacement passport, the Department of State (Department) must confirm the applicant’s identity and eligibility before a corrected or replacement passport can be issued. Form DS-5504 requests information that is necessary to determine whether the applicant is eligible to receive this service in accordance with the requirements of Title III of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (U.S.C. sections 1401-1504), the regulations at 22 C.F.R. Parts 50 and 51, and other applicable authorities.
What business purpose is the information gathered going to be used for?
The information collected on the DS-5504 is used to facilitate the issuance of U.S. passports to U.S. citizens and non-citizen nationals. The primary purpose for soliciting the information is to establish nationality, identity, and entitlement to the issuance of a U.S. passport, and to properly administer and enforce the laws pertaining to the issuance thereof.
The DS-5504 is retained in the files of the Department along with other documentation related to passport applications, adjudication, and issuance. Among other uses within the Department, these records are reviewed when a U.S. passport has been lost and the bearer has no evidence of nationality available or in support of any derivative claims to nationality made by an applicant’s children. The records may also be reviewed by consular personnel in the event of an emergency abroad involving U.S. citizens: the application has a block for the name, address, and telephone number of a person to notify in the event of an emergency. Information from the DS-5504 may also be shared with certain parties outside of the Department, as permitted by the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, including as set forth in the Department’s Prefatory Statement of Routine Uses and the Department’s System of Records Notices (SORN) for Passport Records (STATE-26) and Overseas Citizens Services Records and Other Overseas Records (STATE-05) available in the Federal Register and online at https://www.state.gov/system-of-records-notices-privacy-office/.
The DS-5504 becomes part of the applicant’s passport file, which is covered by the Privacy Act. The information contained in this file cannot be released except as provided by the Privacy and Freedom of Information Acts.
Is this collection able to be completed electronically (e.g., through a website or application)?
The DS-5504 is currently available at travel.state.gov. However, the DS-5504 cannot be submitted electronically because the current U.S. passport and additional documentary evidence (e.g., proof of name change) are required to be submitted in person or by mail with this form. The form can be filled out online and printed for manual signature and submission. When the application is filled out online, a 2-D barcode is printed on each form. This barcode is scanned by Passport Services and automatically records the applicant’s information in the system. This process saves both Passport Services and the applicant time and reduces errors.
Does this collection duplicate any other collection of information?
Aside from necessary, basic self-identification data, the information requested does not duplicate information otherwise available. The DS-5504 is the sole Department form used by current U.S. passport holders who meet the qualifications to apply for a replacement passport at no cost.
Describe any impacts on small business.
This collection of information does not significantly impact small businesses or other small entities.
What are consequences if this collection is not done?
The information collected on the DS-5504 is crucial for documenting a U.S. citizen’s request for a replacement passport and for establishing the applicant’s entitlement to a replacement U.S. passport.
Are there any special collection circumstances?
The DS-5504 is one of three information collections under review that requires development and testing of multiple supporting systems used to complete, adjudicate, and process the application. OMB approved changes to the three collections will require systems development and testing simultaneously. Therefore, it will be necessary to receive OMB approval of the DS-11, DS-82, and DS-5504 together.
Document publication (or intent to publish) a request for public comments in the Federal Register
The Department published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register on November 29, 2024 (89 FR 94867) to solicit public comments on this collection. The Department received no public comments, and is now soliciting comment on this collection for 30 days.
Are payments or gifts given to the respondents?
This information collection does not provide any payment or gift to respondents.
Describe assurances of privacy/confidentiality
This form includes a Privacy Act Statement explaining the routine uses of the information collected under the Act. There are no promises of confidentiality to the respondents. More information on the routine uses of the information collected can be found in the Department’s Prefatory Statement of Routine Uses and in the Department’s System of Records Notices (SORN) for Passport Records (STATE-26) and Overseas Citizen Services Records and Other Overseas Records (STATE-05) available in the Federal Register and online at https://www.state.gov/system-of-records-notices-privacy-office/.
Are any questions of a sensitive nature asked?
The DS-5504 collection of information asks the respondent to provide a Social Security number to confirm the applicant’s identity. Passport Services must confirm that the person applying for additional passport services is the same person to whom the U.S. passport was originally issued. Moreover, passport applicants are required to submit their Social Security numbers with the passport application and failure to provide a Social Security number may result in the denial of an application (consistent with 22 U.S.C. 2714a(f)) and may subject the applicant to a penalty pursuant to 26 U.S.C. 6039E, which is enforced by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service. Consistent with E.O. 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” the DS-5504 also requests the applicant’s biological sex at birth.
Describe the hour time burden and the hour cost burden on the respondent needed to complete this collection.
Respondent Hour Time Burden and Hour Cost Burden
The estimated number of respondents for this collection was calculated by taking the average (rounded) number of projected respondents for the next three fiscal years.
|
DS-5504 Projected Respondents |
FY 2025 |
723,275 |
FY 2026 |
770,587 |
FY 2027 |
808,500 |
Average |
767,500 |
The estimated number of minutes per response is based on a sampling of the time required to search existing data sources, gather the necessary information, provide the information required, review the final collection, and submit the collection to Passport Services for processing. Passport Services estimates that the average time required for this information collection is 40 minutes per response. Therefore, the estimated total annual respondent hour time burden is 511,700 hours
(767,500 annual respondents x 40 minutes / 60 = 511,700)
The estimated cost to respondents is based on the civilian hourly wage listed in the Employer Costs for Employee Compensation released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2023. The base hourly wage is estimated to be $31.48i. We also incorporate a benefit multiplier of 1.3 and the total hourly wage is calculated to be $40.92. The total hourly wage of $40.92 is then multiplied by the annual time burden of 511,700 hours. Therefore, the estimated (rounded) total annual respondent hour cost burden is $20,938,800.
($40.92 total hourly wage x 511,700 annual hours = $20,938,800)
Describe the monetary burden to respondents (out of pocket costs) needed to complete this collection.
Respondent Monetary Burden
To properly complete and submit a DS-5504 passport replacement application, an applicant must submit a photograph that meets criteria specified in the instruction pages. A photo fee of $15.00 is based on a quote from the United States Postal Service (USPS).ii
DS-5504 applications are submitted by mail and are accepted in-person at passport agencies and U.S. embassies and consulates overseas. The Department strongly encourages applicants to mail in their applications via trackable mail, and the current price for a flat rate Priority Mail envelope is $9.85iii.
The Department estimates that
most respondents domestically submit their application to their local
U.S. Post Office for processing, which is estimated to be an average
distance of approximately three (3) miles one way and six (6) miles
round trip. This distance is estimated to take an amount of five (5)
minutes each way for a total of 10 minutes round trip. The Department
has no way to calculate the average distance overseas that applicants
travel to submit the DS-5504s. To determine the travel cost to the
respondent, the Department is factoring in the General Services
Administration (GSA) reimbursement rate of $0.67 per mile for
privately owned vehicles (POV)iv.
A complete breakdown of the involved costs is outlined below. Therefore, the total cost to the respondents is as follows:
Passport Photo |
767,500 respondents x $15.00 fee |
= |
$11,512,500 |
Postage |
767,500 respondents x $9.85 |
= |
$7,559,900 |
Average Travel Cost |
767,500 respondents x 6 miles x $0.67 per mile |
= |
$3,085,300 |
Total Cost to Respondent |
$22,157,700 |
||
The estimated total annual respondent monetary burden is $22,157,700.
Describe the cost incurred by the Federal Government to complete this collection.
Government Adjudication Cost
To calculate the estimated cost to the Federal Government, we use the hourly wage for a FY 2024 domestic Civil Service GS-11 step 10 (the highest level of a passport adjudicator), which is $38.69 - along with a weighted wage rate multiplier. Department employees have access to many resources, so we use two (2) as the weighted wage rate multiplier - as suggested by the Office of Management and Budget. Therefore, the hourly wage is set as $77.38.
($38.69 x 2 = $77.38)
Passport Services estimates that reviewing the DS-5504 requires five (5) minutes of a passport adjudicator’s time. Dividing $77.38/hr. by 60 minutes yields a processing time cost of $1.29 per minute, and that cost multiplied by 5 (minutes) totals $6.45. Multiplying the projected number of annual respondents (767,500) by $6.45 yields $4,950,400. Therefore, the estimated total Government adjudication cost is $4,950,400.
Government Federal Register Notice Cost
The estimated amount to publish one Federal Register Notice (FRN) is $795. A 60-day FRN and a 30-day FRN is published with a total cost of $1,590.
Government Printing Cost
We also take into account the cost to print the forms. The DS-5504 will be produced by a contractor with cost-plus-fixed-fee line items for materials and/or supplies purchase functions. The estimate provided to the Department by the contractor includes costs for contractor labor, supplies, equipment, printing materials, delivery, overhead, support staff, etc. The current cost is $55.26 per 1000 forms.v Based on the projected number of 767,500 annual respondents per year, at a cost of $55.26 per thousand, the contractor printing cost to the Federal Government is $42,400.
Therefore, the estimated total cost to the Federal Government is $4,994,400.
($4,950,400 + $1,590 + $42,400 = $4,994,400
In addition to plain language changes and general format changes, the following content changes have been made to the collection:
The Acts or Conditions statement on the form was revised with the following language:
“The applicant agrees with the following statement:
I am not currently required to register under the sex offender registration program of any jurisdiction for a sex offense against a minor. I have not been convicted of a federal or state drug offense or convicted of a statutory "sex tourism" crime, and I am not the subject of an outstanding federal, state, or local warrant of arrest for a felony; a criminal court order forbidding my departure from the United States; or a subpoena received from the United States in a matter involving federal prosecution for, or grand jury investigation of, a felony.
If any of the above-mentioned acts or conditions have been performed by or apply to the applicant, a supplementary explanatory statement under oath (or affirmation) by the applicant is required to be attached and made part of this application.”
International Megan's Law to Prevent Child Exploitation and Other Sexual Crimes Through Advanced Notification of Traveling Sex Offenders (IML) was enacted in 2016 with the goal that government should identify the whereabouts of sex offenders, including when traveling internationally. See Public Law 114-119 (34 USC Chapter 21501-510). Title 22 was later updated to provide that the Secretary of State "shall not issue a passport to a covered sex offender unless the passport contains a unique identifier and may revoke a passport previously issued without such an identifier of a covered sex offender", reference 22 USC 212b(b). Further, it allows the Department to "require a passport applicant to disclose that they are a registered sex offender", reference 22 USC 212b(e).
The Department believes that modifying the Acts or Conditions section is an important step in furthering the 2023 U.S. National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction.
To comply with E.O. 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” the Department updated the form to replace the term “gender” with “sex.” The U.S. Passport conforms not only with the E.O., but also with the standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, which among other things determine the various fields on the passport’s biographical data page. Consistent with the E.O., the revised DS-5504 will request the applicant’s biological sex at birth, male “M” or female “F.” Amendments to the fields and instructions (section 3) have been made to reflect this.
To allow updates as the Department continues to modernize the passport process, including the use of online payment mechanisms, the Department has updated the fees section to direct applicants to travel.state.gov for more information on fees and methods of payment.
Specify if the data gathered by this collection will be published
Quantitative summaries of Department of State passport activities are published periodically on the Department of State website at: travel.state.gov. Such summaries do not involve the use of complex analytical techniques.
If applicable, explain the reason(s) for seeking approval to not display the OMB expiration date.
The expiration date for OMB approval will be displayed.
Explain any exceptions to the OMB certification statement below.
The Department is not requesting any exceptions to the certification statement.
B. Collection of Information Employing Statistical Methods
This collection does not employ statistical methods.
iSource: Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employer Costs for Employee Compensation – May 2023,” https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm#00-0000
ii Source: U.S. Postal Service, https://www.usps.com/international/passports.htm#
iii Source: USPS, “Priority Mail,” https://www.usps.com/ship/priority-mail.htm.
iv Source: General Services Administration, “Privately Owned Vehicles (POV) Mileage Reimbursement Rates,” https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/transportation-airfare-rates-pov-rates/privately-owned-vehicle-pov-mileage-reimbursement-rates.
v Source: Passport forms printing contractor Occam Solutions
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| File Title | SUPPORTING STATEMENT FOR |
| Author | USDOS |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2025-02-19 |