Renewed your passport? Your ESTA is void
The short answer is no. Your ESTA is linked to the passport number you applied with, and a new passport voids it — even if the authorization itself had another year to run. It is one of the most common reasons travellers get stopped at the check-in desk.
Why this happens
An ESTA is not a document or a sticker in your passport — it is a digital record held by US immigration and keyed to your passport number. Issue a new passport and the number changes, so the record no longer points at anything. As far as the system is concerned, you have no authorization.
This holds even if the old passport is still valid, and even if you replaced it because it was lost or stolen. There is no process for transferring an ESTA to a new passport — only a fresh application.
What else forces a new application
- A change of name — Marriage, divorce, or any other reason.
- A change of gender — As recorded in the passport.
- A change of citizenship — Acquiring another nationality or renouncing one.
- A changed eligibility answer — An arrest, a conviction, or travel to one of the restricted countries since you last applied.
How to check whether yours still holds
Timing and cost
The government fee is $40 per traveller, charged in full — there is no discount for having paid before. Most approvals come back within hours, though the official window is up to 72 hours. With Visale the all-in price is $107 per traveller, and we check the details against the new passport exactly, because a mistyped new number is precisely what causes this to happen twice.
Frequently asked
New passport? We will file the new ESTA
Leave your details and we will make sure the new number goes in correctly.