Americans can now renew their passports online

The State Department has enabled online passport renewal, through the travel.state.gov website.

"This is a service that allows all Americans to pay, upload a photo and apply completely online, without the need to come in person or mail documents," Undersecretary of State for Consular Affairs Rena Bitter explained.

Bitter explained that it is available to adults who want to renew a 10-year-old passport that has expired within the past five years or will expire this year. Applicants must also have a U.S. address, so it will not be possible to apply from overseas.

The page begins by offering a series of questions to let the user know if they can access the service, which has already passed a trial period of several months.

Opting for online renewal does not reduce costs or times -between six and eight months- of the procedure. "Online passport renewal is a matter of convenience and giving Americans a choice," she said.

The department estimated that five million people will be able to use it a year and promised to work to expand its use even further.