How to renew your passport or get a consular ID at your consulate in San Francisco

A passport from your country is often your best photo ID in the U.S. It helps you open a bank account, get an ITIN, apply for a California driver's license and stand in as a parent's ID for a child's U.S. passport. This page is general information. Fees and rules are set by each country and can change, so confirm when you book.

Is it safe to go to my consulate?

A consulate is an office of your own country's government. It is not a U.S. immigration office. Mexico's and El Salvador's passport and ID requirements listed below ask for proof of nationality and identity, not U.S. immigration papers. The Philippine consulate is different: it asks for one proof of your status here (see below). Many consulates also help citizens who are detained, hurt at work or owed wages. Mexico's San Francisco consulate, for example, lists a protection department for people detained by immigration, unpaid wages and workplace accidents (Consulado General de México en San Francisco).

Which consulate serves me?

Go to the consulate that covers the county where you live. Call before you go; addresses change.

• Mexico, San Francisco: 532 Folsom Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. Open 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Serves Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, Sonoma and other northern counties, plus Hawaii. No bags or backpacks allowed (Consulado General de México en San Francisco).
• Mexico, San José: 302 Enzo Drive, Suite 200, San José. (408) 856-2840. Serves Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey counties (Consulado de México en San José).
• Philippines: 447 Sutter Street, 6th floor, San Francisco, CA 94108. (415) 433-6666. Consular services Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Serves Northern California plus Colorado, northern Nevada, Utah and Wyoming (Philippine Consulate General).
• Guatemala: 659 A Merchant Street, San Francisco, CA 94111. (415) 563-8319. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Guatemala's civil registry (RENAP) lists it among missions that provide RENAP services (RENAP list of missions, August 2024).
• El Salvador: 507 Polk Street, Suite 280, San Francisco, CA 94102, per a Salvadoran government transparency record dated May 2024. A consular directory lists 500 Golden Gate Avenue. Use the address on your appointment confirmation.
• Honduras: listings for the Bay Area office disagree, and we did not find the address on an official Honduran page as of October 21, 2026. Book through Honduras's foreign ministry appointment system and go to the address on your confirmation.
• Tonga: the San Francisco Consular Corps directory, a private listing, shows 1350 Bayshore Highway, Suite 610, Burlingame, CA 94010. We did not find an official Tongan page with this address. Check with the consulate before you go.

Live outside the Bay Area? Your country's embassy website lists every consulate in the U.S. and the counties each one serves.

How do I renew a Mexican passport or get a matrícula?

Everything at the Mexican consulates starts with an appointment through MiConsulado: online at citas.sre.gob.mx, or by phone or WhatsApp at 1 (424) 309-0009 (Consulado General de México en San Francisco). The appointment is free. Be careful of anyone selling appointments.

Passport renewal (adults). The San Francisco consulate asks you to bring (Servicios para Mexicanos):

• the passport you are renewing, issued after May 12, 2005, with no notes or "observations" on it;
• your Mexican birth certificate (acta de nacimiento) if the passport was issued in Mexico. Check that it is not a late registration ("extemporánea"), because that can need more papers;
• the fee.

If your old passport is marked as not renewable, or it was lost or stolen, you apply as if for the first time. For a lost or stolen passport, bring a police report.

Passport fees (San Francisco consulate, checked October 21, 2026):

People over 60, people with a certified disability and agricultural workers get 50% off. Emergency issuance costs 30% more (Servicios para Mexicanos).

Passport for a child under 18. Both parents come with the child. Bring the child's original Mexican birth certificate, a school record or U.S. ID for the child (a medical certificate with photo for children under 7) and each parent's valid photo ID. Both parents sign the OP7 consent form. A parent who cannot come can sign the OP7 at any Mexican consulate or SRE office. Divorce does not end a parent's rights; without a court order, both still sign.

Matrícula consular. This is Mexico's photo ID for citizens living abroad. It costs $41 and is valid 5 years. For a first one, bring an original proof of Mexican nationality (birth certificate, nationality certificate, naturalization letter or valid Mexican passport), an original photo ID that matches it, and an original proof of address showing street, unit, city and ZIP. If the bill is not in your name, a relative's birth certificate showing your relationship, or a letter mailed to you, can work. To renew, bring the old matrícula and new proof of address if you moved (Servicios para Mexicanos).

Voter ID. You can also ask for Mexico's voter credential (INE) from abroad through MiConsulado.

What about El Salvador?

El Salvador's foreign ministry sets these rules for Salvadorans abroad:

• Passport (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Pasaportes): adults need a valid original DUI (Salvadoran ID). To renew, also bring the old passport. Fee outside Central America: $60. A lost or stolen passport adds a $20 sworn statement ($80 total). Children: an original birth certificate issued within the past year, and both parents present with a DUI or Salvadoran passport, or a notarized authorization from the missing parent.
• DUI (Documento Único de Identidad): you can get or renew it abroad for $35. To renew, bring the expired DUI. For a first DUI, bring an original birth certificate issued within the past 12 months plus an accepted ID.

If you cannot get a DUI, the passport page allows, with consular approval, a certificate from simple.sv plus a recent birth certificate. Ask the consulate.

What about Guatemala and Honduras?

• Guatemala: passports and the DPI (national ID) are handled at Guatemalan consulates. Requirements depend on whether you have a DPI. Call the San Francisco consulate at (415) 563-8319 before you go, and ask exactly which RENAP birth certificate they need.
• Honduras: check the foreign ministry's appointment system for current passport and ID requirements. We did not find them on an official Honduran page as of October 21, 2026.

What about the Philippines?

The Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco (Passport):

• Book through the DFA Global Online Appointment System at passport.gov.ph. Walk ins are served only after appointments, if there is room.
• Go in person. The consulate takes your photo, fingerprints and signature.
• Bring your current passport and a copy of the data page, plus one proof of your status here (green card, dual citizenship papers, Report of Birth, or a valid U.S. visa). Older non electronic passports may need PSA birth and marriage certificates.
• Fee: $60. Pay by cash, card (with a fee), money order or cashier's check. No personal checks.
• Time: the consulate gives 4 to 8 weeks in one place and 6 to 8 weeks in another. Plan for 8.
• Lost passport: you apply as new, with a notarized affidavit of loss, a police report and PSA certificates. Fees are $150 for a lost ePassport and $90 for an older one.
• Children: a parent must come. Bring the child's PSA birth certificate, the parents' marriage certificate if married, and both parents' passports. Passports for minors are valid 5 years.

The consulate's site does not list a separate consular ID card. If you need ID other than a passport, ask the consulate.

What about Tonga?

Contact the Tonga consulate before you go. We did not find an official Tongan page listing passport requirements or fees as of October 21, 2026.

What can I use these IDs for in the U.S.?

• California driver's license (AB 60): a foreign passport or consular ID can be part of your proof. See Driver's license without papers and California ID.
• Bank accounts: federal rules let banks use a passport number for non U.S. persons, and some banks accept consular IDs (CFPB checklist). See Open a bank account with an ITIN or consular ID.
• ITIN: a foreign passport is the one document the IRS accepts alone (IRS, ITIN supporting documents).
• Your U.S. citizen child's passport: the State Department accepts a valid foreign passport and the Mexican matrícula consular as a parent's photo ID (State Department, Identification).

Mistakes to avoid

• Showing up without an appointment.
• Bringing copies instead of originals. Bring both.
• Names that do not match. Your name must match across your birth certificate and ID. Fix errors first.
• Paying someone for an appointment. Mexico's MiConsulado appointments are free.
• Waiting until you need to travel. Renew when you have six months or more left.

Is there a checklist I can print?

Who can help?

Consulates answer questions about their own documents. For U.S. immigration questions, contact a free legal service. Contact them to confirm hours, languages and openings. Being listed here is not a referral or a promise of service.

• Anywhere in California: California Department of Social Services map of state funded immigration legal services, (916) 651-8017.
• Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto (low income residents of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties): (650) 326-6440.
• San Mateo County Immigrant Services (county residents): (650) 363-4194.
• More: Free legal help in the Bay Area.

Your papers tell where you come from. Keeping them current keeps more doors open here.