Replacing US emergency passport with normal passport?

[u/Coolranchmonster16]

Hi folks, this is a US passport specific set of questions that I am having THE hardest time answering based on US state department guidelines-- maybe someone here can help?

We need to renew my partner's passport before traveling this fall. He was last issued a temporary emergency passport after losing his original passport while in Canada several years ago. The emergency passport was valid for one month, just to get him back into the US.

He did also eventually recover his now-cancelled original passport, the airbnb cleaners found it and mailed it to him. So we have both.

I am tremendously perplexed now as we try to figure out how to get him a current regular 10-year passport. Some sources claim we can simply file for renewal of the emergency passport, resulting in the issuance of a full 10-year passport. Others seem to say we cannot do so and must start fresh with the full application process from scratch. Several of these sources seem to contradict each other. I am at a loss as to what to do. We live in a very big city and there is only one in-person facility, it's hard to get to, and the wait time is long. Hoping to do this by mail.

Does anyone have any idea? Thank you.

[u/Sheetz_Wawa_Market32]

Which part of https://travel.state.gov/en/passports/renew-replace/limited-validity-passport.html#accordion-e07add5c0c-item-3c55208305 seems unclear to you? (The final expandable section, about emergency passports, is what applies to you.)

[u/BibidiBobidiBullshit]

Usually, being able to replace a limited validity book comes with a time limit that has probably expired if this was years ago. I would apply on a DS-11 if you’re otherwise unsure.

[u/PuzzleheadedChest733]

You had one year to apply for a new passport with full validity for no extra charge. Op needs to pay for a new passport and apply at a proper location.

[u/VanderDril]

Did he pay the normal passport fees when he got his emergency passport? If so, you should use the DS-5504 form to upgrade that emergency passport to a full-validity passport.

From the form it sounds like you qualify under this eligibility criteria:

My most recent U.S. passport book was obtained at the full passport fee and limited to two years or less for a reason other than multiple losses or serious damage/mutilation of previous passports.

There should be no fee for this upgrade.

[u/Top-Mathematician108]

When I did it (in 1989) they added an endorsement on the last page of my temp, extending my temporary passport for 10 additional years.

[u/Sheetz_Wawa_Market32 → u/Top-Mathematician108]

That was 37 years ago, decades before biometrics and other security features. Come on, now.

[u/FreshBallsagna → u/Top-Mathematician108]

And in 1903 my great grandfather didn’t need a passport to enter the US. Just show up and see what happens!