A regular Canadian passport renewal takes 20 business days if you apply online, by mail, or at a regular Service Canada Centre. Applying in person at a passport office, or at a Service Canada Centre that offers 10-day processing, cuts that to 10 business days. Neither figure includes mailing time.
Current processing times
Canada’s official service standards set two tiers. Submit in person at a passport office (a Service Canada Centre, Passport Services) or at a Service Canada Centre that offers 10-day processing, and the standard is 10 business days. Submit in person at a regular Service Canada Centre, by mail, or online, and the standard is 20 business days. Both exclude mailing time in each direction. If the government misses its own standard, you may be eligible for a fee refund under the Service Fees Act, processed automatically.
Online vs. in person vs. mail
Online renewal is available to a limited number of applicants daily, only if you need your passport in 20 business days or more: your current passport is cancelled the moment you apply, and the new one arrives in 20 business days plus mailing time. Applying in person gets your new passport mailed in 10 or 20 business days depending on the location, with faster pickup options available for an extra fee. Mail applications run the same 20 business days, plus post time each way.
Fees
As of March 31, 2026, a 10-year adult passport (age 16 and up, applied for within Canada) costs $163.50, up from $160. A 5-year adult passport costs $122.50, and a child passport (ages 0 to 15) costs $58.50. Faster in-person pickup costs extra: $125.75 for urgent pickup by the end of the next business day, $50 for express pickup within 2 to 9 business days, or $20 for standard pickup on or after 10 business days.
Who can renew
You can renew, rather than apply fresh, only if your last passport was an adult passport issued when you were at least 16, issued within the last 15 years, valid for 5 or 10 years, and shows the same name, date of birth, place of birth, and gender identifier you want on the new one. All of those have to be true to use the renewal route; otherwise you apply for a new adult passport instead. Applying more than a year before your current passport expires triggers a request for your reason, and by mail that reason needs to be in writing.
FAQ
How long does a Canadian passport renewal really take? Plan on 20 business days for online, mail, or a regular Service Canada Centre, or 10 business days for in-person service at a passport office, not counting mail time.
How much does a 10-year adult passport cost? $163.50 as of March 31, 2026, for an application submitted within Canada. A 5-year adult passport is $122.50.
Can everyone renew online? No. Online renewal is capped to a limited number of applicants per day, and only works if you don’t need the passport in under 20 business days.
Never let a Canadian passport catch you out
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Related reading: How early should you renew a PR card? and What happens when an Ontario driver’s licence expires?
Sources
- Check our service standards: Canadian passports and other travel documents (canada.ca)
- Pay your passport fee in Canada (canada.ca)
- Passport and travel document fee changes (canada.ca)
- Check if you can renew your passport (canada.ca)
- Get the form and submit your passport renewal in Canada (canada.ca)