Our US passports expire next March, and I have seen info suggesting we should send them in with a renewal application about 9 months ahead of expiration. If we did that, would the new passports expire sooner because we requested renewal early, or would they expire 10 years from the present March, 2014 date?

They expire 10 years from the date the new passport is issued. The old passport's expiration date doesn't have anything to do with it.

Travel to certain countries requires your passport be valid for at least six months from the time you travel. It really is a rip off because we lose six months of our valid passport. If you don't plan to do any traveling, then wait to renew your passport.

Agreed. Unless you plan to travel you can wait. It only takes a few weeks normal processing time to get a new passport.

With the sequester nonsense going on right now, I would not wait . .

We just got our passport renewals. That 4-6 weeks was pretty accurate. So, I wouldn't want to wait until a couple months before renewing. Although the price HAS gone up, it's not so much that it's a real concern. Shoot for a few months in advance.

Nonsense. They have no immediate plans to travel anywhere, and "sequester nonsense" is fear mongering, not facts.

http://travel.state.gov/passport/pro...sing_1740.html

ROUTINE SERVICE
As of ( Tuesday July 16, 2013 ), we are processing routine applications in approximately 4-6 weeks from the time of application.

EXPEDITED SERVICE
As of ( Tuesday July 16, 2013 ), we are processing requests for expedited service in about 2-3 weeks door-to-door, when overnight delivery is requested and paid for both ways (to and from the passport agency).

Thank you all. If the time-to-process stays as it is, it seems as if about two months prior to expiration will work for us, unless an unexpected foreign trip comes along.