As of March 24, standard processing takes anywhere between 10 and 13 weeks, while expedited service, which costs an additional $60, typically takes between seven and nine weeks. A new online passport renewal platform has been put on hold while it is being optimized and upgraded, which adds to the demand for new and renewed passports.
Normally, you should renew your passport around nine months before it is scheduled to expire, but lengthy wait periods suggest that travelers should act sooner if they have future intentions to go internationally.
The best piece of advise we can give is to give yourself plenty of time and think about using an expedited service to give yourself a little more wiggle room. You can renew your passport by mail if it’s still in good condition, was issued within the last 15 years, and was obtained after you became 16 years old.
Fill out the DS-82 passport renewal application, which you must submit along with your passport, fees, and a two-by-two-inch photo that can be professionally done, for instance, at your neighborhood CVS or Walgreens.
Users can even calculate their exact payment amount using a passport fee calculator provided by the State Department. Additionally, if a traveler already has a photo that satisfies the standards, they can crop and resize it using the State Department’s photo tool.
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About two weeks after mailing your application, you can start checking its status online. Officials caution that it may take up to two weeks for your mailed passport application to arrive at an agency and another two weeks for it to reach your mailbox after being printed. If waiting several weeks isn’t an option, you can request an appointment at a passport agency but this is only for emergency or urgent travel. Keep in mind that mailing times are not included in processing times. Candidates must depart “within 72 hours,” which translates to three business days. The U.S. government states, “This is only in an emergency such as a major illness, injury, or death in your immediate family.”
Officials will demand “evidence of immediate international travel,” such as purchased plane or cruise tickets, from people who need to leave urgently in the next two weeks.
Source: Travel Pulse
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