Passport renewal
 

It's been two weeks since I sent in my passport renewal. I paid the extra $60 for it to be expedited. I went online to check the status, but they show it as not yet being processed. I did not pay the extra for expedited shipping as I did not know to do this until after I mailed it off. I included in the envelope: old passport, completed application, check for $127, and two photographs complying with their specifications. Online it states that the processing should take several days -- it's now two weeks. I am wondering if the severe weather is to blame.

Is anyone else in the same boat? I have over a month until I travel, but I don't like being without a passport.

Try calling them.

Where did you send the passport and where did you send this from.

From the US, it should be fast but in France it takes 6 to 8 weeks. I used special postage but nothing else for expedite charges.

Other posters can give more information but give the info marked above.

Blackduff

Blackduff, it was mailed to Philadelphia from Los Angeles.

Hi Luv,

Call the US Passport Office: 1-877-487-2778

How long until you need the passport?

((I))

Hi Ira, I have plenty of time -- not going until late April. I just worry that my passport got lost. I will call them next week. Thanks.

We had a similar experience last February and after several e-mails and phone calls I was told there was no guarantee my son's passport would be back for my trip (that was 2 weeks away). (The other 4 family members had passports) They had had it for 5-6 weeks. Someone suggested I call my Congressman which I did and they have a passport person who called the NH processing center and my son's passport was overnighted the next day.

bella33, did you pay the extra $60 for it to be expedited?

Luvtotravel: I didn't pay it initially as we had 8 weeks. When there was such a delay I called the passport # and they said I could give my credit card and upgrade to pay the $60 for expedited which I did. When I called back, I was told that there was no guarantee they would do it and they wouldn't charge my card unless they expedited it. I definitely learned a lesson. It was a last minute trip so we should have paid the expedited from the beginning or used a service. Thanks.

Our taxpayer dollars at work. My expedited passport request still is not showing up on the status page at their website. When calling all I get is a recording saying that they are experiencing a high volume of calls and to call back later. I can't even reach a person. I mailed my passport on February 4 and it is now February 21 with no trace of my passport. So much for paying the extra $60.

Thanks for letting me vent. This is so frustrating.

Sorry for yur plight, luv. Hope everything works out, soon.

For those of us with renewals on the horizon, is there any merit to taking the renewal application and materials to a paasport agency window at the post office rather than mailing them ourselves?

luvoftravel, did you send it by certified mail? I'm also traveling in late April and mailed mine on Jan 24. They cashed my check more than a week ago, so I thought the new passport would arrive soon after. However, when I checked the status online just now, it said:

"When you applied, you requested Routine Service and Routine Delivery of your passport. Passport Agencies use Priority Mail. This means you should receive your passport within 6 weeks from the date you applied. Depending upon how the facility where you applied forwarded your application, you should receive your passport on or about 03/25/2007."

Well, it won't be "on" 3/25 which is a Sunday. Looks like their 6-week estimate is from the time they cash your check, not from when you mailed the application, and non-expedited renewals really take 9 or more weeks. (Although there's still plenty of time before my trip, I desperately need the passport as an ID in order to change my expired out-of-state driver's license to a NY license before early April). I finally reached a real person on the phone just now after holding for 43 minutes (to get put on hold instead of simply cut off, keep you have to keep pressing "9" for "main menu" and "3" for "check status" repeatly-- eventually you'll get to the music instead of the "try back later"), only to be told that she couldn't do anything today because their computers are down and that I should try back tomorrow.

So don't waste time trying to call them tonight.

I'm getting nervous about my daughter's passport, too. She's 14 and we went to the passport office (part of the county services offices) on 12/29/06, 3 months in advance of our trip departure of 3/29/07.
The clerk looked at her certified birth certificate, filled out the paperwork, took her picture, and charged us $93, the standard fee.
One week later the check was cashed but six weeks later, on Feb. 16th I received a rejection letter from the State Dept. Although we had submitted a certified birth certificate, it was an abstract, not the long form.
I expedited getting the correct copy from the County Recorder in OC, CA (we are now in Mpls) and less than a week later, on Feb. 21st, I overnighted it back via UPS with a $60 check for expediated service plus paid in advance for the passport to be overnighted back to me.
The rejection letter came with a return envelope with codes and dates and asked for the departure date to be written on the front (I put the departure date as 3/15/07). I put all the documents in there, copied all the info on the front of the UPS envelope and it was delived and signed for at 11:30 am the next day.
I'm hoping that since they let the whole thing sit around for 6 weeks and sent me a coded return envelope, that that will be their cue that this is already in their system and just waiting for the birth certificate and I will have her passport within 2 weeks (that is what they claim if you pay the extra $60).
The only reason we didn't apply sooner was because we felt it would be best to have a trip booked first. Although it was my fault for not having the proper birth certicate, you'd think they could have rejected it at the time of application (as they did with my husband's in 1986) or at least when they happily cashed the check.

Hi all,
I have been going through something similar. Sent in my renewal and name change at the end of January. Sent it certified so I was able to see it was received January 31. I did not pay for expedited service as I had no travel plans. But in the meantime I booked a trip to Paris for April 3-10. Now I was getting nervous and checked the online status every day.

It was finally logged on Thursday of last week, the 22nd, it took three full weeks to even show in the system! I called the 23rd to expedite from that point and the gentleman told me he's never seen anything like it but that my passport had been processed at 4:30pm on the 22nd, finished at 11am on the 23rd and was in Friday's mail. I never even had to upgrade the service, that was standard!

So, my advice is to keep checking, keep calling. I did not get a live person until the 5th time I called Friday and then was on hold for 20 minutes. Also, the email status request is great because a live person checks it and emails in about 24 hours.

It seems that with the higher volume, they are starting to get a real routine down and are getting things out more quickly. Good luck!

Dana

Dana,
I followed you suggestion and called the toll-free number. After lengthy recorded instructions, they hung-up on me.
Was that due to high volume?
I sent an email (however last when I did that at the end of January, a month after applying and 3 weeks before they sent me the letter requesting the correct birth certificate, they never answered my email).
With March 1st looming and our departure date getting closer, I'm starting to stress out over this.

Julieah - what does an abstract birth certificate look like? I'm about to apply for passport with certified birth cert and now I'm hoping I have the correct type.

Julie,

Yes I was hung up on several times due to high call volume. I kept on trying since I was so desperate to expedite and finally I was thrown into a hold queue. It depends on how quickly you need to talk to a live person. I would try again. I always got very quick email responses too (by quick I mean within 24-36 hours). Have you also tried the online status checker? Maybe they have posted the receipt of the correct birth certificate and the expedite request?

The good news is, both my husband's and my passports arrived yesterday, earlier than I expected. So I would hope that once they process the new birth certificate, things will move very quickly.

Dana

Here is my update:
the abstract birth certificate is a shortened version of the regular one. It stated on it: certified abstact birth certificate. So, therefore, I didn't know there was a long version and because it said certified, I thought I had the right one.
Yesterday morning I called the 800 # (for a second time) to talk to a customer service rep and only had to wait 10 min!
The customer service rep said the passport would be mailed within 3 days.
I sent a UPS overnight envelope and prepaid the fee so maybe it will be here by Monday? (I don't know what within 3 days exactly means).

My passport renewal took longer than I had expected, but I had put our depature date on the application. I suspect that they handle the requests by that date; anyone leaving prior to your date gets quicker attention. It arrived in plenty of time, but it didn't keep me from also worrying. I did not pay for an expedited handling though. Your situation just reenforces the fact that one needs to renew way in advance of the expiration date.

The Passport Agency has now had my expedited application for four weeks. No sign of me in their tracking system and they haven't cashed my check yet.

The system is overloaded because of the new passport rules and everyone needing a passport applying within the last 6 months. Even the official passport office for government employees is backlogged. Tell your friends if they plan to do any out of US travel to apply now for a passport.

My passport app was a new one for my 14 yr old daughter and has gotten hung-up because I was not told by the clerk that I did not have a proper certified birth certificate, (at the time of applying), I had an certified abstract BC.
Secondly, the US State Dept office in SC, kept it for 6 weeks before returning it to me for the right BC.
I also don't think they update the on-line status site because on Tues I was told by a customer service rep that the passport would be mailed out within 3 days, but the online site has no updated info.
I would sugguest you call them. The 800 number was posted earlier in this thread and the hours are 7 am till midnight ET.

Someone at my congressman's office has been working on this for a week and has had no more success than I have. I can't help wondering why they charge $60 for expedited service when they clearly are not offering that service.

Do all of the US passport requests go to one main processing center or is there one per region? I've read about a lot of differing return times and I'm wondering if that's a factor. Like region A is overloaded so it takes extra long whereas region B isn't as busy.

My daughter's passpost arrived yesterday morning. It was sent USPS overnight (although I had requested and paid for UPS overnight. Got a refund from UPS).
All in all, with the birth certificate glitch, it took about 7 1/2 weeks from start to finish.
Her app was applied for at a passport office in Mpls which is part of the county's services, i.e., licenses, etc. It was processed in SC. And, considering the weather yesterday from Mpls to SC, it's pretty amazing it showed up at 11:45 am.
One important thing. If you want to track your passport status, call.
They do not update the online status. Today it says hers is still in process. Also, I included the $60 expedite fee when I sent back the correct birth certificate. They cashed the check and I guess they used that towards the overnight mail fees of $15.00.

Yay Julieah, glad the passport arrived!

Luvtotravel, any progress?

I just applied last Tuesday, everything expedited so we'll see. I need it by late April, but nervous already. Hours after submitting it I began to wonder about the certified birth cert I submitted... and they accepted. It has the colored ink seal that many passport sites claim is valid, however I think it was from 20 years ago and not sure that the passport offices accept anymore. Can't seem to get a definitive answer.
I'm just waiting for the reject letter and I'll overnite the real birth cert (yep seems mom had it all along). I wonder if I can just go ahead and send it, of course then it may get lost.
So now I can see that I'll be packing for a trip that I don't know will happen. Oh well at least I'll be packed already if I have to reschedule!

My sister applied in person at a local post office on 2/14. Her check was cashed Saturday, 2/24 according to her bank, and she received her passport on Wednesday, 2/28. This was for a new, expedited passport, though.

tamtravels -- yes, I've had some progress. I spoke with a staffer at my congressman's office yesterday and she assured me they were working on it. I just looked at the online status and lo and behold, there it was.

"Thank you for submitting your passport application!

Your passport application locator number is xxxxxxxxxx.

When you applied, you requested Expedite Service and Routine Delivery of your passport. Passport Agencies use Priority Mail.

This means you should receive your passport on or about 03/07/2007.

If your travel plans change and you need your passport sooner, please contact the National Passport Information Center."

So I should have it next week -- a little more than five weeks after mailing it. I must add that I'm sure it would not have moved so quickly if my congressman's staffer had not been persistent. I must send her a thank you note.

I'm starting to get a bit worried reading this thread. I'm traveling June 7 and need to renew my passport. Should I be worried, or am I still okay? I am going to send it in tomorrow. Should I pay to expedite it? Also my current passport (that expired last month) has an official name change on it that I had done years ago. Should I assume that I don't need to provide proof of this name change since I already have done this, even though the front page still has my old name on it? (Name change is reflected on back page.) I'm nervous about doing anything to slow down the process which could sabotage my trip plans. Thanks!

They have such a backlog now that I would do it ASAP even if i didn't have something planned already, just to get it off my mind. Some applications go right through others drag on. Who knows why but that's how it is.

I went to the local post office on 2/15 to renew two children's passport and apply for a new passport for a newborn.

I paid the expedited fee and the fees to USPS for Express Mail. I received all three passports on 3/3!

We had to go to the USPS because they were all under 18, maybe that helps????

Some desperate collegues that had to go on a business trip booked a red-eye to Atlanta and processed their passports in person at their office. They returned the next day, passports on hand. Company paid the expenses...

If you know you have an upcoming trip, do it today so you don't have to sit on pins and needles like I did when we applied for out 14 yr old daughter's 3 months in advance and got it last Thursday.
It was a big hassle because they are overloaded.
My passport comes up for renewal in 3/08 and I'm going to renew it this September.

FYI: I mailed my passport Feb 4th and paid the extra $60 and wrote expedite on the outside of the envelope. I just checked online and it said it should arrive around March 10th. My trip is March 17th and so I called the Passport Office but after listening to their message I decided to give it a couple more days before spending an afternoon on hold to speak with someone.

I guess the lesson here is apply early. I have a problem with paying to expedite when this is what their job is anyway. Why am I paying more to get them to do what they are already getting paid to do?

Got my passport off on Monday, and paid for expedited. jeremygil, let us know when yours shows up--seems as if the 3-4 weeks they list for expedited service is not happening. Hope yours arrives soon!

Applying early is a good idea indeed. I had a baby in early January, so my passport hasn't been on my radar until now. I hope I'm in good shape for my June trip!

Hi Everyone

I feel Nicky's pain. To make a long story short, I had a similar situation this week and it was the most frustrating situation i have ever been in. I had sent in my passport in early Jan for a name change/renewal and was assured it would be completed by the end of Feb since I would traveling the 2nd week in March. The person I spoke to was reassuring me up and down that everything would be taken care of and that there was no need to expedite my renewal. Of course this didn't happen and I AM still waiting for my passport and will be leaving in less than 1 week. I still need to apply for a visa which will give me even less time before my departure date.

Here's the kicker: I called last week to expedite my renewal since the status online said i would getting my passport the last week in March, which is when i would be returning from my trip. The rep on the phone was really accomodating and told me i would have to pay a processing fee to expedite my request (which i did). He then gave me a tracking number (it was sent Postal express) and ASSURED me that my passport would arrive by on Saturday (3/3) and the latest Monday (3/5). I tried tracking the package online (USPS.com) and the package didn't exist. So i called on Monday and today 20x each day since its always BUSY because of high call volume. When i finally got a hold of a rep, they said that it was sent out Friday by Fedex AND US Postal with 2 different tracking numbers. I screamed "WHAT"??? The rep "John" than assured me that it was definitely sent by USPS but probably never scanned and he didn't know what the FedEx number was about and couldn't really help me further.

After doing some further research, the Fedex tracking # "John" gave me was also incorrect. So i called 1-877-487-2778)again to see what the deal was. This time, the rep who answered the phoen seemed really non-chalant and said that "it is not the responsiblity or accountability of the agency" to get my passport to me. WHAT???? This was turning out to become a complete nightmare. I explained that basically my passport was out there in LIMBO with 2 tracking numbers that were completely useless since no one knew where this package was. The rep kept saying, "i don't know what to tell you."

These people are absolutely ridiculous not to mention inept. NEVER will i go through a renewal by mail again with these people. It is so upsetting to know that they don't care.

After a few more calls to try to get a rep that could've helped, my husband finally called our congresman to see if they can locate my passport.

But all is not LOST: After being persistent for the last couple of days, i refused to let these inept jerks get the best of me and wanted to resolve this with a reasonable answer and not just get the run-around. I finally called FEDEX and USPS to see if they can locate the package by my last name and address and wouldn't you know it, it turned out that FEDEX had it and couldn't deliver it because the passport agency gave them the wrong ADDRESS and gave me the wrong tracking number! So tonite, I will be picking up the package at Fedex to end this nightmare.

I know this is a long posting, but i just needed to vent to show how disappointing and inept these folks are!

Some friends of mine applied for passports for the 2 kids. One came in 4 weeks, nothing on the other. Of course they went through the email phone battle. Finally 4 weeks later it showed up. With the new regulations and backlog it can be a nightmare.

We're really nervious, too. My daughter, son and two grandsons applied for their passports on Feb. 4 (my daughter's was a renewal with a name change, the others were new). The trip is April 4. We offered to pay to expedite, but the postal guy said no way would it take 8 weeks.

Well, until yesterday they hadn't shown up on line. Today they say they are in process and she'll receive them "on or about April 4th." My daughter has called and called and gets the hang up. I'm in Paris and can't think of anything to do, but we ARE nervous.

Maybe contacting our Congressman?

I'm pleased to report that my passport arrived today. I am greatly relieved. With an expedited application -- and with the assistance of my congressman's staffer -- it took 31 days from the day I mailed it.

On my last passport they had taken my photo and stuck it on. This time it is printed on the paper. Also, there are so many lines and imprints, it's hard to see the photo clearly. I'm sure it's all for security reasons, but it must make it difficult for the passport control people to compare the photo with the person standing in from of him or her.

There is another post that questions if one may smile in a passport picture. Well, there I am, with a wide grin and lots of pearly whites showing.