3 On Your Side: Passport Applicants/Renewals Waiting Longer
By Jim Donovan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- So do the frigid temperatures today have you dreaming of a trip to someplace warm? Spring break is right around the corner and summer not far behind. But depending on where you want to go, and if you need a passport, you better get cracking. Otherwise as 3 On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan explains, you could be in for a surprise.
Need a passport? The U.S. government says it could take six weeks just to get your passport renewed. That's longer than usual. Here's why. Within the next three years 49 million passports will expire.
You can thank a 2007 federal law for the avalanche of renewals. It requires U.S. citizens to carry a passport when traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda.
Even if your passport is current, most European countries will not accept passports within six months of their expiration dates.
To get your passport quicker, act now. Photos can be taken at many post offices, drug stores, even public libraries.
The State Department says that pictures are the number one reason why renewals may be held up. The photos should be 2 inches by 2 inches, taken with a plain white background, and with no smile.
Once you get that perfect picture you can renew that passport by mail, or in person at sanctioned locations for faster service.
The fee for first time passport applicants is $110 for adults, $80 dollars for kids under 16. Plus a $25 dollar execution fee. If you're renewing your passport, you don't have to pay that extra 25 bucks.