Passports taking longer to process

[Don Haynes]

The State Dept. is now saying up to ten weeks to process a passport, and up to 4 weeks for an expedited passport. We knew this process would take longer, but it seems every few months the process gets longer. Don't delay any longer, get your passports now. It can only get worst when the adults have to have passports next year to drive across the borders.

 

From the State Dept. website:

 

http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/processing/processing_1740.html

[Maryfrei]

Very true. We applied on 1/27. At the time the web site said tracking would begin in one week and passports would be received in six weeks. Ours took three weeks to begin tracking, and the projected date to receive has varied from 3/24-3/31.

 

Since then they have updated their website to say that tracking for regular apps won't start for three weeks and passports won't be received for ten weeks. This is for regular processing, not expedited. I am hoping they make the 3/28 date they now show for ours, which would be about 8 1/2 weeks from the date we applied.

 

If not I am ready with birth certificates. But as Don says, apply sooner rather than later. Even expedited apps are taking a long time and you have to pay a lot more. Leave yourself as much time as possible:)!

[WErlich]

Seeing your post I checked my status again. I went from 4/30 to 5/1. The first time they posted was on Monday. They also took my birth certificates to get our Passports so I am counting on it getting here prior to my 5/27 cruise.

[Theresa522]

My niece will be coming with us April 1st and her passport was due to arrive by March 17th. However, when I read your post I figured I would check again, and sure enough it now says by March 21.:eek: She filed for her passport back in Jan.

 

This is cutting it WAY to close so I am sugguesting to her that she call and have it expedited for $60.00. Well worth it. Only problem is that you are on the phone for well over an hour!! We had to do it for my aunt, but she now has her passport!

[Theresa522]

Seeing your post I checked my status again. I went from 4/30 to 5/1. The first time they posted was on Monday. They also took my birth certificates to get our Passports so I am counting on it getting here prior to my 5/27 cruise.

 

 

Maybe you should have it expedited.. Better safe then sorry..

[Maryfrei]

In any case, get another copy of your birth certificate if they still have yours!

[moe.girl]

Thought I'd post my experience as well. My boyfriend and I are leaving on the 4/1 Dawn cruise. Applied on 1/26 & started checking status beginning of March. My boyfriend applied the same day from the same post office, but his was a new application where mine was a renewal. He got his on 3/9, exactly 6 weeks later. Up until this morning, mine said ETA was 3/13. Now there is a message saying that it's in the "final stages" of processing and the new ETA is 3/20.

 

I know we waited way too long, but got caught up with holiday stuff and kind of forgot how quickly the trip was coming up. I'm hopeful that I get it in time, but if not I have my birth cerfificate & I'll just have to cross my fingers that there are no problems! :)

[Sea Hound]

Just want to check - we're on the 6/10/07 Spirit sailing out of NYC. Ports are FL, Bahamas, and private island. Our NCL agent told us we did not need passports for this itinerary - just birth certificates - is that everyone else's understanding? My passport is expired and my wife doesn't have one. From what I'm reading, we probably couldn't get one in time!

 

Thanx!

[mbisson]

Just want to check - we're on the 6/10/07 Spirit sailing out of NYC. Ports are FL, Bahamas, and private island. Our NCL agent told us we did not need passports for this itinerary - just birth certificates - is that everyone else's understanding? My passport is expired and my wife doesn't have one. From what I'm reading, we probably couldn't get one in time!

 

Thanx!

 

This year, the BC & govt issued photo ID will work. You could possibly get a passport in time, but it would be cutting it close (expedited would be a big help). If you should decide to apply for a passport (might not be a bad idea if you expect to travel in the future) I'd also get another BC (as some have said above) as a "just in case the passport doesn't make it in time"

 

-Monte

[mpk218]

Just want to check - we're on the 6/10/07 Spirit sailing out of NYC. Ports are FL, Bahamas, and private island. Our NCL agent told us we did not need passports for this itinerary - just birth certificates - is that everyone else's understanding? My passport is expired and my wife doesn't have one. From what I'm reading, we probably couldn't get one in time!

 

Thanx!

 

You dont need one.. For those that have a trip planed soon that are flying out of or in to the US all I can say is call untill you reach a person. When calling , after the message begins press 9 on your phone . You may need to do this more than once , but it will put you into the on hold system and not just hang up on you . I made this call for my 2 kids passports on 3/13 because they were pushed past our departure date , They arrived today 3/15 . Can you believe that.

They are only interested in depatures that are within 10 days. Pluss no extra cost..:D

[212cruiser]

FWIW, I just checked the status of the passport for one of our children. We applied for it one week ago yesterday and have been advised (online) it has already been mailed. We paid for expedited service.

[Theresa522]

Well my niece called and spoke with a really nice man and will have her passport by tomorrow!!! Best part it was at no extra charge.

 

moe.joe, I would suggest you call and do the same thing.

[Snowrose]

*grin* And here a bunch of folks on this board were putting down Canadians when they were mentioning that they had a delay in their passports being processed! ;)

 

Teri

[smeyer418]

NY times article

 

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-US-Passports.html

 

long waits....

 

they moved me :)

[Theresa522]

Hi, just got off the phone with NCL and they informed me that as long as you are NOT flying you can still use a goverment issued photo id and birth certificate. I think we have until Jan. 08 before it is mandatory. Just thought I would others a heads-up who didn't know this either.

[WErlich]

My travel agent told me that if something happen while at port we would have extreme trouble getting back into the states.

[cruisequeen10]

Here in Canada, the website states 7-9 weeks. I had gone in February and was expected to wait in line for 6 hours. An hour into the wait, they came and told us that they have an express drop off with only a 2 hour window. We would have to have our birth certificates and picture ID photocopied. That was no problem, as there was a facility in the building to do just that. Well I was expecting my passport to arrive sometime the first week of April. Well I have already received it, only took 2 weeks and received it in the mail. My sister went the week after me and waited in line (from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00) and she has already received hers, took only 3 weeks. I guess we were just lucky.

[Raiderhater]

We are on the Pearl in June. My wife went to courthouse on 2-26, we payed the extra money to have it rushed and we got it on wednesday 16 days after we applied for it.

[PRNole47]

You know, it's not like this passport requirement just "sparked" into existence this year, unannounced. It's been in the works for at least 3 years, when Congress passed the new law under its Intelligence Reform Act in 2004. Since then there have been numerous media articles from the travel industry -- usually in the local papers' "lifestyle" sections -- all of which warned about the requirement and the coming deadlines for requiring passports for all US citizens' re-entry into the USA.

 

Granted, there are many people that like to wait until the last minute but, really, waiting until the very year that the major changes -- re-entry from Mexico, Caribbean, and Canada -- went into effect is a bit much.

 

I'm really surprised by the number of people who decided not to renew or apply for new passports even as late as last fall but waited, instead, until a few months before their travel this very year. What's even more amazing to me is the number of complaints reported about how much of a delay there is now that billions and billions of Americans are flooding passport offices at the last minute.

[trex-de]

What's even more amazing to me is the number of complaints reported about how much of a delay there is now that billions and billions of Americans are flooding passport offices at the last minute.

 

What's amazing to me is that the Passport office did not anticipate this. In January and February, their website clearly stated 6 weeks for standard processing. Anyone who applied for a passport early in the year would think that 6 weeks would be all the time it would take. The website said so. Then they became backed-up. Red print appeared all over the website...6 weeks became 10 weeks...their telephone message says that they are staffing up and working overtime.

 

To me it sounds like they are in a bit of a crisis. Anyone who applies now has nothing to complain about. They know it will take 10 weeks. I believe that those who applied when it was 6 weeks do have a point. Hopefully, they will work it all out and travelers will get to travel on time.

[btown]

Ours took 7 weeks. Applied mid January. Medford Mass post office.

[vowsatsea]

Yeah, there's an article on the AOL window saying that there is such an increase in passport requests now, with more than 1 million per month! My boyfriend and I don't have one, and don't need one for our itinerary. We'd like to get one, but we thought of it too late, and there's no use trying for one now.

[Luey]

I think it may be difficult for some people to plan ahead. My 81 year old father-in-law surprised me and my family by asking if he could tag along for our cruise next month.

 

He had let his passport expire 8 years ago when his wife went into a nursing home thinking he would never travel again.

 

Not everyone knows in advance they will need a passport. We are prepared for our trip... but I do remember getting 6 passports for our family a few years ago when we went to Mexico and the cost was a lot for us to bear on top of an already expensive vacation.

 

I can't help but feel sorry for all those government workers having to put in overtime. It is disappointing when your own husband works for the Post Office and reports come in weekly as to the current wait time. When my father-in-law ordered his, the wait was 4 weeks. According to the website, it is now 10 weeks, scheduled to arrive 4 days before we leave. Think we'll have to expedite this one.....

 

Good luck to all those waiting and waiting and waiting.

[Plant]

You know, it's not like this passport requirement just "sparked" into existence this year, unannounced. It's been in the works for at least 3 years, when Congress passed the new law under its Intelligence Reform Act in 2004. Since then there have been numerous media articles from the travel industry -- usually in the local papers' "lifestyle" sections -- all of which warned about the requirement and the coming deadlines for requiring passports for all US citizens' re-entry into the USA.

 

Granted, there are many people that like to wait until the last minute but, really, waiting until the very year that the major changes -- re-entry from Mexico, Caribbean, and Canada -- went into effect is a bit much.

 

I'm really surprised by the number of people who decided not to renew or apply for new passports even as late as last fall but waited, instead, until a few months before their travel this very year. What's even more amazing to me is the number of complaints reported about how much of a delay there is now that billions and billions of Americans are flooding passport offices at the last minute.

 

I agree with you, but many people don't read a newspaper or watch the news (many of my friends don't :eek: ). I think that a lot of people are "surprised" to find out they need passports.

 

Because I read several of the cruise sites, I knew that we'd need passports and we applied last fall and got ours within 3 weeks.

 

I predict that there will be a lot of unhappy cruiser's next January when we MUST have passports! There will probably be a lot of last minute, great priced cruises then :D !

[KeystoneCruiser]

We applied on February 1 at the post office to renew my daughter's passport. We have a trip scheduled for April 6. That was 9 weeks out when we applied. I just checked the website and they said the passport won't arrive until April 14.....the day we return from the trip.

 

Luckily it is a trip within the US and we just wanted the passport for her at the airport security gates. Since she is 9 and traveling with her parents, it shouldn't be a problem.