October 4, 20214 yr Not sure WTF is up with this. I know they're behind, but it's been months. About 2 weeks ago I finally got back my passport that's set to expire, with holes punched in it, and a note saying that the renewed passport will arrive in a separate mailing. Meanwhile, the State Department website says that my passport is being printed and should arrive by September 1. I have a trip planned for December. Anyone have recent experience with passport renewal, and how long should it take right now?
October 4, 20214 yr We renewed our kids' passports in Aug and it took a month. We paid extra for expedited service.
October 4, 20214 yr We renewed in person at the Tarrant County Courthouse in Arlington. One really nice covid change is that the passport office is now on a scheduling system. Previously you'd show up, take a number, and wait hours to be called. Now you show up at your scheduled time and you're the only person there and get help immediately. We chatted up the lady working and she loved it. No longer does she have to deal with customers that are bitchy because they had to wait hours.
October 4, 20214 yr Author how did you apply? (not sure it makes a diff but i need to get mine renewed)By mail. The passport office near me only accepts new applications and kids’ passports and I was told that I had to apply by mail.
October 4, 20214 yr Did mine by mail a few months ago. They came in two separate envelopes (old and new) maybe a few days apart. It was actually smooth. I was uncomfortable -- I had an expired passport, and then NO passport, for a few weeks. Made me antsy. But once I sent it in, it was pretty quick.
October 4, 20214 yr Did mine 6 months ago and it took 4 weeks. Regular service, not expedited. Situation seems fluid, State Dept website says 16 weeks now.
October 4, 20214 yr Author Did mine by mail a few months ago. They came in two separate envelopes (old and new) maybe a few days apart. It was actually smooth. I was uncomfortable -- I had an expired passport, and then NO passport, for a few weeks. Made me antsy. But once I sent it in, it was pretty quick.Yeah. It’s making me really antsy. Especially because my passport was actually valid for a while, but they mailed my old valid one back with holes punched in it. I only renewed this early because of a vacation in December that to get a visa my passport has to be valid 8 months after entry—it would have been valid 7 months. Ugh.
October 5, 20214 yr Related: I renewed my Global Entry recently, completed the renewal questions online and a couple weeks later the new card showed up in the mail.
October 5, 20214 yr We sent ours off in June for renewal. Kids came in in August. Wife and mine arrived mid September.
October 5, 20214 yr I haven't had a passport in 30 years, have an appointment on thursday to get a new one. They said it'll be done in 16 weeks.
October 5, 20214 yr did it back in april, took a month. old passports were mailed back about 2 weeks before the new ones came.
October 27, 20214 yr My wife, 2 kids and I went in for passports on 10-7 and 10-8. They said it would be 16 weeks, one of my kids got hers back in 2 weeks. Crazy fast. Still waiting for the other three.
October 27, 20214 yr Author I did finally get my new passport, about 4 months after sending it in for renewal.
October 27, 20214 yr Same experience as most of y'all. Renewed in Sept. They said to allow 8-12 weeks or something so I paid for expediting and got it in a month.
October 27, 20214 yr On 10/5/2021 at 12:52 PM, gsoda3 said: did it back in april, took a month. old passports were mailed back about 2 weeks before the new ones came. what method?
October 28, 20214 yr Just a data point that's useless to most: international renewals (via local US embassy in foreign countries) are still very quick. Multiple recent experiences with Bangkok have all returned within 3 weeks, some in 2 weeks. My guess is international renewals are prioritized as those people are more likely to need their passport urgently.
October 28, 20214 yr It’s a fucking shit show. Almost impossible to get an appointment and shit takes twice as long as normal. It’s ridiculous.
October 28, 20214 yr 27 minutes ago, C-Man said: It’s a fucking shit show. Almost impossible to get an appointment and shit takes twice as long as normal. It’s ridiculous. Impossible to get an appointment where? It’s 10 times better than it was earlier this year. And you can finally get appointments again for same day turnaround.
October 28, 20214 yr 2 hours ago, justhookit said: Impossible to get an appointment where? It’s 10 times better than it was earlier this year. And you can finally get appointments again for same day turnaround. Going off the issues renewing both of my kids' passports earlier this year. Maybe it's gotten better. But you could only book appointments like two weeks out so it was a mad dash to get those appointments before they filled up. Can't see me for six weeks? Perfect -- but let me book the appointment. Getting a driver's license is/was just as bad.
October 28, 20214 yr I sent off to renew mine on 10/18. After hearing all the horror stories about how long it's taking, I hired this company to expedite things (after some pretty extensive research). I think it was around $200. Have trip on 12/7 so I'm either fucked or money well spent...we'll see. I'll report back.
October 28, 20214 yr I renewed mine and got it back in about 8-10 weeks. The new one came in prior to the old one showing up. The process was pretty simple since you can print the form out, get a new picture and take all that shit to the post office and let them ship it off. She tried to tell me I needed an appointment, but once she finally understood I was renewing and had all my shit it was easy.
October 28, 20214 yr 2 hours ago, Landomatic said: I sent off to renew mine on 10/18. After hearing all the horror stories about how long it's taking, I hired this company to expedite things (after some pretty extensive research). I think it was around $200. Have trip on 12/7 so I'm either fucked or money well spent...we'll see. I'll report back. Please try to remember to update the thread once you get it. Meanwhile, mine expires next October. I'm leaving for the DR next week, and upon my return I have no further trips planned. How soon can a passport be renewed?
October 28, 20214 yr If you’re in a city with a passport agency that will always be the fastest way to renew, go down there and submit and pay the expediting fees. That is all a courier or expediter does. They take your passport by mail, your application, and get a drop-off time and hand it over. If you can’t get to a center to do it yourself it could be worth the money if you absolutely have to fly.
October 29, 20214 yr 8 hours ago, Gil Bang said: How soon can a passport be renewed? Any time. I tell people to renew anytime within 2yr of expiration when they have a time block where they know they won't need the passport.
October 29, 20214 yr 23 hours ago, Landomatic said: I sent off to renew mine on 10/18. After hearing all the horror stories about how long it's taking, I hired this company to expedite things (after some pretty extensive research). I think it was around $200. Have trip on 12/7 so I'm either fucked or money well spent...we'll see. I'll report back. Sent mine off 10/18 as well (expedited). My trip isn’t until mid January so I’ll be your control group. I’m starting to regret trusting the up to 10 weeks without checking. Edited October 29, 20214 yr by bigcigar
October 29, 20214 yr Had to travel international earlier this year. I used rushmypassport.com and had it in three-four weeks.
October 29, 20214 yr Thanks for reminder. Traveling next April so going ahead and renewing without expediting. Between the times given here and the State Department reducing the turnaround windows a little bit it seems like the backlog is being cleared a bit. Fuck the State Department for not taking credit card payment though. Have to make a run to the bank to go get checks before I send this thing in.
October 29, 20214 yr 3 hours ago, Tailgate said: Had to travel international earlier this year. I used rushmypassport.com and had it in three-four weeks. When was that? I has optimism.
November 14, 20214 yr Submitted my application on 10-7, got my passport on friday. Damn, that was fast!
November 15, 20214 yr On 10/29/2021 at 11:35 AM, Landomatic said: When was that? I has optimism. I forget the exact dates. My wife, originally from Nam, got hers with the same service a week before I did. I’ve used them before and highly recommend.
November 15, 20214 yr https://atlasvisa.com/passports/ I used these guys when I renewed mine in 2019. Door to door was a week or 10 days, and I had a new passport with a new work visa for my job in it as well.
November 16, 20214 yr On 10/29/2021 at 7:39 AM, Tailgate said: Had to travel international earlier this year. I used rushmypassport.com and had it in three-four weeks. On 11/14/2021 at 10:50 AM, Sandman said: Submitted my application on 10-7, got my passport on friday. Damn, that was fast! So, just over 5 weeks? Is my math right on that? Did you use a service or anything? On 11/14/2021 at 6:02 PM, Tailgate said: I forget the exact dates. My wife, originally from Nam, got hers with the same service a week before I did. I’ve used them before and highly recommend. Yesterday was 4 weeks for mine (using rushmypassport.com) and I still don't have it. Shitty thing is, even though my trip isn't until 12/7 (which is right at 7 weeks from when I submitted it), I only have until 11/22 (5 weeks) to cancel hotel or I lose half the total. Cutting it close.
November 16, 20214 yr You can ask your congressman to do an inquiry for you. The passport place should be able to give you the locator number (or whatever it is actually called) that you give the congressional office that number along with a release/authorization to have them speak with the State Department. Do it today.
November 16, 20214 yr 1 hour ago, Landomatic said: So, just over 5 weeks? Is my math right on that? Did you use a service or anything? Yesterday was 4 weeks for mine (using rushmypassport.com) and I still don't have it. Shitty thing is, even though my trip isn't until 12/7 (which is right at 7 weeks from when I submitted it), I only have until 11/22 (5 weeks) to cancel hotel or I lose half the total. Cutting it close. Yes, 5 weeks. This was for 3 new passports and 1 renewal. I didn't use a service or pay for the expedite fee. We filled out the forms at home and dropped them at the post office. I was told it would take 16 weeks so this is quite the surprise. I don't know if we just got some motivated employees to process our stuff or if there's just fewer applications being submitted.
November 16, 20214 yr I've had to inquire about this, because future DIL is getting married in May, returning from honeymoon in early June, and needs to have name-changed (to our last name) passport for Aug. 31 for a family trip. The scuttlebutt is that the passport renewal system has almost caught up from covid-delays, and things are back to normal more or less... in reality, non-expidited pp's are about 5-6 weeks and expedited 3-4. Sounds like it's about that way from the most recent posts here. In worse-comes-to-worst, get your congressman's ofc to help with it... I know a friend in Virginia who got it done in like 8 hours (he sent away but wasn't there for day of departure). I've had about 4 renewals and in the slowest case (all non-expedited) it was like 4 weeks; a few times it was 2 and yes you always get back your old one with holes in it separately and a week or two before the new one.
November 16, 20214 yr Coming back in here— if you are in a city with a passport agency, or even if you are within a window to just direct expedite your renewal through mail— using an expediter is basically flushing money down a toilet.
November 17, 20214 yr 11 hours ago, Landomatic said: So, just over 5 weeks? Is my math right on that? Did you use a service or anything? Yesterday was 4 weeks for mine (using rushmypassport.com) and I still don't have it. Shitty thing is, even though my trip isn't until 12/7 (which is right at 7 weeks from when I submitted it), I only have until 11/22 (5 weeks) to cancel hotel or I lose half the total. Cutting it close. Aaaaand…I just got confirmation that my passport has been shipped and is on its way back to me. I think (fingers crossed) that means I’ll have it on Thursday 11/18. So just over 4 weeks.
November 17, 20214 yr 4 hours ago, Landomatic said: Aaaaand…I just got confirmation that my passport has been shipped and is on its way back to me. I think (fingers crossed) that means I’ll have it on Thursday 11/18. So just over 4 weeks. I didn’t get a confirmation email (even though I signed up), but checked status site and it’s approved / to be delivered 11/19. So control group shows the service saved you a day?
November 17, 20214 yr 20 hours ago, 956 Worldwide said: Coming back in here— if you are in a city with a passport agency, or even if you are within a window to just direct expedite your renewal through mail— using an expediter is basically flushing money down a toilet. 7 hours ago, bigcigar said: I didn’t get a confirmation email (even though I signed up), but checked status site and it’s approved / to be delivered 11/19. So control group shows the service saved you a day? Yeah, so far, from what I can tell, the $200ish I spent for the expediting service was probably a waste of money from an actual time standpoint. Not sure what the exact process would have been without it. When I went to do check into doing it, all I was hearing/reading is A) what a beating the process is, and B) how long everything was taking. So, in a nutshell, I used them mostly just to eliminate some of the beating factor and to be sure I'd dotted every i and crossed every t, which they did a pretty good job of helping ensure. I'd been hearing that getting an appointment at the local county courthouse/government agency/whatever was a nightmare...can never get through to make the appointment, once you do get someone on the phone, appointments are weeks out, etc jut for the application. Had also heard that you can just go down to the courthouse (or whatever) and wait in line if you don't have an appointment, but that you have to get there at like 6:00AM to stand in line outside before they open and put your name in, which leads to a full day of waiting at said government building, to then hopefully get you in sometime late afternoon to start the application process. Fuck that. I was feeling panicked and that money was probably for peace of mind if nothing else. With so many unknowns surrounding it all due to covid and what looked to be a constantly moving goalpost, I just wanted to be sure I'd covered my ass as much as possible. And the process was pretty easy, so no regerts I guess.
November 17, 20214 yr 3 hours ago, Landomatic said: Yeah, so far, from what I can tell, the $200ish I spent for the expediting service was probably a waste of money from an actual time standpoint. Not sure what the exact process would have been without it. When I went to do check into doing it, all I was hearing/reading is A) what a beating the process is, and B) how long everything was taking. So, in a nutshell, I used them mostly just to eliminate some of the beating factor and to be sure I'd dotted every i and crossed every t, which they did a pretty good job of helping ensure. I'd been hearing that getting an appointment at the local county courthouse/government agency/whatever was a nightmare...can never get through to make the appointment, once you do get someone on the phone, appointments are weeks out, etc jut for the application. Had also heard that you can just go down to the courthouse (or whatever) and wait in line if you don't have an appointment, but that you have to get there at like 6:00AM to stand in line outside before they open and put your name in, which leads to a full day of waiting at said government building, to then hopefully get you in sometime late afternoon to start the application process. Fuck that. I was feeling panicked and that money was probably for peace of mind if nothing else. With so many unknowns surrounding it all due to covid and what looked to be a constantly moving goalpost, I just wanted to be sure I'd covered my ass as much as possible. And the process was pretty easy, so no regerts I guess. I would have done the same with a 12/7 trip. They were quoting 10 weeks for expedited back in October. I’d bet the random, unexpected catch-up contributed to the delivery being similar vs the service not making a difference. I was nervous at 10 week lead time with a MLK weekend trip.
November 17, 20214 yr On 11/14/2021 at 10:50 AM, Sandman said: Submitted my application on 10-7, got my passport on friday. Damn, that was fast! We had the same experience. Got both our passport and card back in less than a week. Surprisingly smooth.
November 18, 20214 yr 5 minutes ago, bigcigar said: 10/19 submitted - delivered today (expedited) Got mine today too. Submitted on 10/18. So, yep...gained a whole day by using the service.
November 18, 20214 yr 24 minutes ago, Landomatic said: Got mine today too. Submitted on 10/18. So, yep...gained a whole day by using the service. Maybe a couple more - 10/19 was the receipt date by the processing center. I mailed 10/15
November 18, 20214 yr 4 hours ago, bigcigar said: Maybe a couple more - 10/19 was the receipt date by the processing center. I mailed 10/15 Oh right...so, my math was jacked. You actually gained a couple days. So, if anything, you actually saved time on yours. What all did you have to do to get it?
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