Have you tried to get a passport lately? If so then you know of the tremendous backlog of passport applications, what used to be a 6 week process had grown to a 10 week process, and in we’re hearing of some folks having to wait as long as 16 weeks to receive their passports.
Entering the summer travel season passport offices, post offices, travel agents, and even congressional offices have been besieged by travelers who’s departure dates are approaching and still haven’t received their passports.
In recognition of how serious the situation has become the President has ordered a temporary change to the passport rules.
US Citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda who have applied for but not yet received passports can temporarily enter and depart from the United States by air with a government issued photo identification and Department of State official proof of application for a passport through September 30, 2007.
There’s two important pieces of this latest change - First, if you will be traveling to outside of the US via air you must still apply for a passport. If you are traveling to any international destination outside of Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, or Bermuda you must still have a valid passport. Finally this rule expires on September 30, 2007.
Need to check on the status of your passport application or get proof of application for a passport? Head over to travel.state.gov, where you can get everything you need. The website advises that passport status requests submitted through the website take about a week to process.
If you are going to travel destination in the next six months that requires a passport and don’t have one yet you still need to apply for one. We strongly recommend that you expedite your passport application, while costly, expedited applications are taking between 4 to 6 weeks to be processed and delivered.
If you have additional questions feel free to call us at 888-286-9827 or visit travel.state.govÂ
Filed under: Travel Advisories
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