SIOUX FALLS, SD — With new requirements for travelers, more Americans than ever are applying for passports. To make that process easier, the Sioux Falls Post Office will accept passport applications at the third annual Diversity Fair.

The Diversity Fair will be held at the Orpheum Lobby and Studio Theater, next to the Orpheum Theater at 315 North Phillips Avenue, on Wednesday, April 4. Passport acceptance clerks will be available at the Fair between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

A passport costs $97 for adults (16 years and older), with separate payments of $30 to the Postal Service for its processing fee and $67 to the Department of State for the passport application fee. For persons under 16, the cost is $82, with separate payments of $30 to the Postal Service and $52 to the Department of State.

The passport application requires two recent identical photographs, which the Post Offices will take for $15.

To help the application process go smoothly, the Postal Service recommends:

• Bring in proper proof of American citizenship. This must be either: a certified birth certificate issued by a, county or state; a previous U.S. passport; a certificate of citizenship; or a naturalization certificate. (A hospital-issued birth certificate alone is not acceptable.)
• Bring in proof of identity. This must be either: a previous U.S. passport; a naturalization certificate; a certificate of citizenship; or a current valid driver's license, government ID or military photo ID.
• To save time, download a passport application at www.usps.com/passport and complete it before going to the Post Office.

More information on passport application procedures and the new guidelines for passport travel can be found at www.travel.state.gov. Additional postal information is available by calling 1-800-ASK-USPS (1-800-275-8777).

For those unavailable to attend the Diversity Fair, the Sioux Falls Post Office accepts passport applications at the Meadows Postal Store, 2501 S. Louise, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. (M-F) and the Main Post Office at 401 S 2^nd Ave, 8:30 a.m.- 4 p.m. (M-F).

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An independent federal agency, the Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation — 146 million homes and businesses — six days a week and also has 37,000 retail locations. It relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. USPS has annual revenues of $73 billion and delivers more than 46 percent of the world's mail volume.