In America, in 2021, it Takes 18 Weeks to Renew a Passport. What's Gone Wrong?

US PassportImagebank

Step into almost any passport office in a first-world country, anywhere in the world and you can leave with a new passport in hand, or at worst, receive it in the mail 5–7 days later. In America, as of July 2021, unless you apply for a new passport at least five months in advance, you could end up losing your holiday.

Wait, hold on. Back up. Five months? Isn't the U.S. a bastion of technology, a beacon of light in the field of progressive IT systems and efficiency? Surely this must be some kind of mistake. Never mind the fact the passport itself takes 12 weeks (three months) to process, you can then wait six weeks for the postal service to deliver it, giving a whole new meaning to the term “snail mail”.

If you're traveling anywhere outside of the U.S. that will require a passport, you need to check your passport well before the time. In fact, you can renew it at any point if it's winding down to its last year of validity. Given the current waiting times, it may be advisable to plan well ahead as you never know when you may need to travel unexpectedly.

Here’s what you need to keep in mind when planning your trip;

• Your passport needs to be valid for at least six months after the start of your international trip.
• Adult passports are good for 10 years, passports for children under the age of 16 are valid for five years.
• Under current conditions, the wait time for passport processing takes 18 weeks for routine service.

So what’s gone so spectacularly wrong?

The Department of State’s passport operations blame the long delays on Covid-related staffing shortages, and then, of course, these have affected the United States Postal Service, which is also suffering. The following advice is posted on the passport pages for the US Bureau of Consular Affairs.

• Routine service can take up to 18 weeks from the day an application is submitted to the day a new passport is received. The 18-week timeframe includes up to 12 weeks for processing and up to 6 weeks for mailing times on the front and back end.
• Expedite service (for an additional $60) can take up to 12 weeks from the day an application is submitted to the day a new passport is received. The 12-week timeframe includes up to 6 weeks for processing and up to 6 weeks for mailing times on the front and back end.

These timeframes can of course vary, sometimes taking even longer, or you may just get lucky and receive your passport sooner. There are a few things you can do to ensure the process goes as quickly as possible. 

As far as emergency travel documents are concerned, passport agencies are prioritizing these, so unless you've got a life and death emergency, you aren't going to be able to get an appointment easily either. Not at any office, even if you try out of state.

Your best chance of cutting down your waiting time is to pay for the Expedite Service at an additional $60 and then ensure you send off the documents via a trackable service. Pay the extra $17.56 for 1–2 day delivery for the return of your completed passport.

If you are an adult with an existing ten-year passport, you can mail in your renewal and don't need to appear in person.

Traveling locally?

US Passport CardFreestock

If you don't travel outside of the US, you might think you're better off without a passport, but that may soon change. As part of the Real ID Act, you may find a passport far simpler for local flights. To read up on how this act will affect you, click the link above.

The Real ID Act requires all state-issued identification documents (IDs) to meet a set of minimum security standards. IDs that do not meet these minimum security standards won’t be accepted for federal purposes, including as ID for boarding domestic flights. Your state’s IDs might not meet these minimum security standards.

The U.S. passport book and U.S. passport card are both accepted as ID for domestic flights.

The great news is that simply by ticking a box on your passport application, they'll enclose the Passport card as well.

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