The Passport Place at Fresno State has reopened to provide passport services to the public. On Monday, the office welcomed back customers for the first time since closing due to COVID-19 more than a year ago.

Service is by appointment only, from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Appointments can be obtained by visiting the Passport Place at the Fresno State website at www.FresnoPassports.com and clicking on the “Schedule an appointment now!” button to access the online scheduling platform. No walk-in services will be provided.

Appointments are limited to first-time passport applicants or those who do not meet the U.S. State Department passport renewal criteria. Most adult passport renewals can be completed by applicants without visiting an acceptance facility and can be processed by mail.

Following California State University and local health agency guidance, customers will be required to wear a mask at all times and observe social distancing. Customers also must complete the campus’ online daily health screening before they come to Fresno State, and visit a drive-through health screening checkpoint for a temperature check, before parking and going to the office.

The Passport Place at Fresno State is located in the Continuing and Global Education office, Room 140 of the Kremen Education Building at the northwest corner of Shaw and Maple Avenues.

One of the Nation’s Largest

Since opening in 2012, the Passport Place at Fresno State has become one of the largest passport acceptance facilities in the country. All proceeds from Passport Place operations go directly to support students participating in international study abroad experiences via the Division of Continuing and Global Education’s travel grant program.

Operated by division staff and student assistants, the facility is certified by the U.S. Department of State and at full capacity maintains 12 agents. Over the 12 months prior to the COVID-19 closure, the Passport Place processed close to 13,000 applications, generating over $400,000 in proceeds through the $35 facility fee charged to each applicant. In addition to the almost 13,000 applications processed, thousands of additional community members also visited the facility for consultation on passport renewals as well.

With minimal overhead, the proceeds that the Passport Place generates are combined with other funding sources to guarantee travel grants for students. Before COVID-19 halted international travel/programming in 2020, Continuing and Global Education had awarded 643 grants to students during the 2019-20 academic year, with $500 awards issued for student participation in international conferences, $700 for hybrid study abroad programs, $1,000 for short-term study abroad programs and $1,500 for semester or year-long study abroad programs.

Contributed by Fresno State News