Where can I find my book number in my passport?

Where can you find the passport book number?

• Answer:

  When applying for a US passport renewal, the online form (DS-82) asks you for your "Passport Book Number" but does not define what this is, exactly. After finding nothing definitive online, I contacted the National Passport Information Center and asked them. (They have a toll free number. It is 1-877-487-2778. Customer service reps are available Monday to Friday, 6:00 am to midnight, eastern time, except for federal holidays.) The "Passport Book Number" is listed as the "Passport Number" on the SAME page as your photo in your passport. It is NOT the number at the back of the passport book with the barcode beneath (although it appears that for more recent passports, this barcoded number may, in fact, be the same number as your "passport number." I suggsted to the NPIC representative that they make this distinction clearer in their instructions to avoid the need for time-consuming phone inquiries.