What Are the Best Sources of Passport Advice?

The best sources of passport advice are government websites and passport offices. Some governments have staff dedicated to keeping their websites up to date and completely accurate. If a person wants to speak to someone directly, he or she can visit a passport office. Depending on the type of information desired, a photographer who specializes in passport photos might also be of help. Whatever the case, it is important to avoid potential scams, usually located on the Internet and promising surprisingly good deals or special passport benefits.

A lot of governments have websites to keep their citizens informed on the latest passport regulations. Simply entering related keywords into a search engine will usually result in at least one local government website. Some keywords to find passport advice might be “passport help,” “how to get a passport,” or the word "passport" followed by the resident country. Domain names ending in .gov and .edu are more trustworthy than .com or .net. In addition, reputable websites generally list their location and display contact information to allow visitors to email or call.

Passport offices or passport facilities are typically spread out around the country. A person can find the location of the nearest passport office by looking it up on the web or flipping through a phone book or other directory. These facilities usually allow people to pick up applications and ask basic questions, but appointments may be necessary for long conversations. Passport offices are some of the most reliable sources of passport advice, because they deal with passports every day. The staff in these places can also point people in the right direction to get appropriate passport photos.

If the passport advice needed is in regard to getting an appropriate picture taken, passport photographers exist to help out. Passport photographers know the local regulations on passport photos really well. They give people passport advice on what clothing to where, how their face should look, and how to style their hair. Sometimes these professionals even have guarantees that promise that the local passport facility will consider the picture acceptable or the customer gets his or her money back.

Passport scams are fairly common. It is best to avoid places giving out suspicious passport advice, such as encouraging people to buy new birth certificates or other fraudulent documents. In addition, it is generally impossible to get special privileges by ordering a passport through a certain passport service. If the deal seems odd or too good to be true, it may be a scam.