How to Fill Out and Submit the Canadian Passport Renewal Form (PPTC 054)

Form PPTC 054 is Canada’s simplified adult passport renewal application. If you already hold a recent Canadian passport in your own name, you can use it to get a new one without a guarantor, without proof of citizenship, and without most of the paperwork a first-time applicant provides. You fill in your previous passport details, your current address, and two references, attach two photos and your old passport, pay the fee, and submit it online, in person, or by mail. The catch is eligibility: miss one condition and you have to use the general application (PPTC 153) instead.

Who Can Use the Simplified Renewal

You qualify for PPTC 054 only if every one of these is true:¹

You were 16 or older when you applied for your most recent passport.
That passport was issued for five or ten years.
It was issued no more than 15 years ago.
You still have it. It has not been reported lost, stolen, or surrendered.
The name, date of birth, and place of birth you want on the new passport match what’s printed in the old one.
You want the same sex identifier that appears in your current passport or on an observation sticker inside it.

Any name change disqualifies you, whether it comes from marriage, divorce, or another reason. So does a request to change the sex identifier. In both cases the form instructions send you to PPTC 153.¹

One trap catches early renewers. If your current passport still has more than twelve months of validity on the day you apply, you must include a written explanation of why you’re renewing now. The Passport Program can refuse the application if it isn’t satisfied with the reason.¹

Filling Out the Form

You can download PPTC 054 from the Government of Canada’s website or pick it up at any Service Canada Centre or passport office.² Blank fields and mismatches are the two things that get applications sent back, so work through each section carefully.

Section 1: Previous Passport

Copy your passport number, issue date, and expiry date exactly as they appear in your most recent passport. The Passport Program uses these to pull your existing file. Any discrepancy will cause the application to be rejected and returned.¹

Section 2: Personal Information and Contact

Provide your permanent address, a mailing address if it’s different, a phone number, and an email address. If you hold any other still-valid Canadian passport that you haven’t already handed in, enclose it with the application. If a valid passport is lost, stolen, or damaged, complete form PPTC 203 to declare the circumstances and submit it along with PPTC 054.¹

Section 3: References

List two people who are at least 18, are not related to you, and have known you for at least two years. For each one, provide their full name, relationship to you, home address, phone numbers, email address, and how many years they’ve known you.¹ They must be willing to be contacted, because the Passport Program may call them to confirm your identity. They do not sign your photos and they do not need to appear in person.

Booklet Size and Payment

Choose the validity period you want, five or ten years, and indicate whether you want the standard 36-page booklet or the 48-page version. If you’re mailing the form, enter your credit card number and expiry date in the payment section.

Photo Requirements

You need two identical, unaltered photos taken in the last six months by a commercial photographer. Each one measures 50 mm wide by 70 mm high.³ On the back of one photo, the photographer writes or stamps their name, complete studio address, and the date the photo was taken. Stick-on labels are not accepted.⁴

The background must be plain white or light-coloured with clear contrast between it and your face, so don’t wear white. Keep a neutral expression, eyes open and looking at the camera, mouth closed. Prescription glasses are permitted if your eyes are clearly visible and the lenses show no glare; sunglasses and tinted lenses are not. Head coverings are allowed only if worn daily for religious or medical reasons, and your full face must remain visible without shadow.³

Unlike the general application, PPTC 054 does not require anyone to sign the back of your photos.¹

How to Submit It

You have three ways to send in a renewal within Canada. Each one comes with a different processing speed and a different set of trade-offs.

Online

The IRCC Portal accepts adult renewals when you meet the PPTC 054 rules plus a few extras: your home and mailing addresses are both in Canada, your passport expires within the next six months or is already expired, and there are no observations in your current passport.⁵ You upload a digital photo that meets the same specifications as a printed one.

Important: submitting online cancels your current passport immediately. If you have travel plans within the next 20 business days plus mailing time, apply in person instead.⁵ Online renewal is not open to applicants outside Canada.

In Person

Bring the completed form, photos, previous passport, and payment to a passport office (Service Canada Centre – Passport Services) or a regular Service Canada Centre.⁶ Passport offices offer the fastest standard turnaround (10 business days) and are the only locations that provide urgent and express pickup. Applying in person also lets you keep your current passport while the new one is being produced, which matters if you may need it in the meantime.⁷

In-person payment can be by Visa, MasterCard, American Express, prepaid card, debit card, certified cheque, or money order in Canadian funds payable to the Receiver General for Canada. Cash and personal cheques are not accepted.⁸

By Mail

Send the form, photos, previous passport, and payment to the Passport Program. The courier address is the same across the country: Government of Canada, Passport Program, 22 De Varennes Street, Gatineau, Quebec J8T 8R1. For regular mail, most provinces use Passport Program, Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0G3, but British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut mail to Passport Program, PO Box 4000 STN LCD 3, Mississauga, Ontario L5K 0A9.⁹ Registered mail or courier is worth the extra cost because the package contains your existing passport.

Payment by mail can be by credit card, embossed prepaid card (with raised numbers or letters), certified cheque, or money order in Canadian funds for the exact amount, payable to the Receiver General for Canada. Debit is not an option by mail.⁸

Fees

Fees for renewals inside Canada, as of March 31, 2026:¹⁰

10-year adult passport: $163.50 CAD
5-year adult passport: $122.50 CAD

If you’re applying from the United States, a 10-year passport is $260 CAD and a 5-year is $190 CAD. Replacing a valid passport that was lost or stolen adds $45 CAD.¹¹

Processing Times

Standard processing depends on how you submit:¹²

In person at a passport office with 10-day processing: 10 business days
In person at a regular Service Canada Centre, by mail, or online: 20 business days
From the United States by mail: 20 business days

These times do not include mailing the finished passport back to you.

If you need it faster, two expedited options are available when you apply in person at a passport office:¹³

Express pickup, 2 to 9 business days: $50 surcharge
Urgent pickup, end of the next business day: $125.75 surcharge

Both require proof that you need the passport that quickly: an airline, bus, or train ticket; a paid travel itinerary; proof of family illness or death requiring travel; or a written statement explaining a legal, banking, or residency reason.¹³

Why Applications Get Sent Back

The Passport Program rejects and returns simplified renewals for the same handful of reasons:¹

The name, date of birth, or place of birth in Section 1 doesn’t match the previous passport exactly. This is the most common cause.
Your name has changed for any reason, which disqualifies you from PPTC 054 outright.
You want a different sex identifier, which also requires PPTC 153.
You can’t produce the previous passport and haven’t accounted for it on form PPTC 203.
The form has blank fields or missing sections.
You’re renewing more than 12 months before expiry without a written explanation.

If the Passport Program contacts you asking for more information or documents, you have 30 calendar days to respond. Miss that window and your file may be closed, forcing you to start over.

A Note for Dual Citizens

If you hold Canadian and another citizenship, you need a valid Canadian passport to board a flight to Canada. That rule applies even if the country you’re leaving requires you to use your other passport, and even if you’re only transiting through Canada.¹⁴ A special authorization can allow travel without a Canadian passport in limited circumstances, but for most dual citizens the simpler path is renewing on time.

1
Government of Canada. Adult Simplified Renewal Passport Application
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Get the Form and Submit Your Application in Person
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Passport Photo Requirements
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Government of Canada. Passport Photo Specifications
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Renew Your Passport Online
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Service Canada. Passport and Biometrics Service Locations in Canada
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Applying for a Passport
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Pay Your Passport Fee in Canada
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Get the Form and Renew a Passport by Mail in Canada
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Government of Canada. Passport and Travel Document Fee Changes
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Pay Your Passport Fee – Canadians in the United States
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Canadian Passports and Other Travel Documents
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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Get Urgent, Express or Emergency Weekend Passport Services
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Government of Canada. Dual Citizens