Passport Question

[russell_bynum]

I may have to fly to London in the next few weeks on business (realistically it'll probably be early December) and my passport is expired.

 

According to the State Department I can do expedited renewal by mail and get my new passport in 2 weeks if I meet a bunch of criteria. The only one of their criteria that I'm unclear on is:

 

"Your most recent U.S. Passport was issued within the last 15 years."

 

My passport was issued in 1993, but it was May of 1993. I'm guessing that means I'm SOL and I have to go apply in person, but I couldn't find anything that clarified this.

 

Anyone know?

 

 

[Tony_K]

When it comes to passports there are no sure bets!

You are "best served" by going in.

 

[SteveB]

Mine was expired by almost 24 months and other than chasing someone down to take an acceptable photo the ‘mail’ process went really easy. They are really picky about the white back ground. We used the expedited and overnight service for peace of mind, not that FedEx is any more secure laying on the front door step. You might want to give them a call.

 

BTW: Be selective on what you pack.

[russell_bynum]

Mine was expired by almost 24 months and other than chasing someone down to take an acceptable photo the ‘mail’ process went really easy. They are really picky about the white back ground. We used the expedited and overnight service for peace of mind, not that FedEx is any more secure laying on the front door step. You might want to give them a call.

 

BTW: Be selective on what you pack.

 

According to the website, they don't care when it expired, they care when it was issued.

 

I'll give 'em a call in the morning...I just wanted to see if I could use the power of the Intarwebs to get an answer sooner than that.

[bakerzdosen]

+1 on the FedEx thing. They mailed my manager's passport back to him in just a few days.

 

However, the Post Office delivered it (signature required) to the wrong address. The Post Office then couldn't figure out where it went or who signed for it.

 

It took him 8 months to finally get a new one.

[Lets_Play_Two]

I may have to fly to London in the next few weeks on business (realistically it'll probably be early December) and my passport is expired.

 

According to the State Department I can do expedited renewal by mail and get my new passport in 2 weeks if I meet a bunch of criteria. The only one of their criteria that I'm unclear on is:

 

"Your most recent U.S. Passport was issued within the last 15 years."

 

My passport was issued in 1993, but it was May of 1993. I'm guessing that means I'm SOL and I have to go apply in person, but I couldn't find anything that clarified this.

 

Anyone know?

 

 

You need to go in person anyway if you were under 16 when it was issued!

[ghaverkamp]

According to the website, they don't care when it expired, they care when it was issued.

 

Correct. They do not care about expiration date. 2 years ago, I sent in my former passport which had been issued in '92 and expired in '93. They "renewed" it in a flash.

 

I think you're doing this in person. May 1993 is more than 15 years ago.

[tallman]

I'd be more concerned about watch/detain lists rather than expiration dates if I were you.

Just saying...

[motoguy128]

My wife renewed her's last year when we thought she might travel with my to France for a business trip I had. I beleive it took about 2-1/2 - 3 weeks with the expedited service.

 

With the economy slowing, I'd expect foreign travel to slow down, so wait times for renewals might not be too bad right now.

[leikam]

With all the conservatives moving out of the country now, I'd not be so sure...

 

Russell, I would talk to somebody in person and get some expert advice from the department. I got my passport renewed in a couple weeks so the process is worth it, but I would hate for you to go to the trouble and expense if they're only going to kick you out for being 6 months late.

[russell_bynum]

I just talked to a very helpful government employee (I always thought that was an oxymoron.) and I do indeed need to apply in person.

 

No biggie.

[Deadboy]

You can actually do this at the post office if that is easier....I renewed mine there last year, they will even take the photo.

[russell_bynum]

You can actually do this at the post office if that is easier....I renewed mine there last year, they will even take the photo.

 

You can get a complete list of places that will accept your application on the state department's website. Many of them do also offer photo services.

[tobyzusa]

.... and I do indeed need to apply in person.

 

No biggie.

 

It's a Big Brother trap to lure you in. Don't fall for it!

[Ken H.]

Good reminder that everyone should have a current passport. While not official yet, required even to/from Canada for all methods of travel is inevitable sooner or later.

[R80RTKen]

No worries, I was in the same situation as you...

 

Go to the "Main" Post Office in the list of places that do your passport stuff.. Bring your itinerary. Bring your checkbook, your birth certificate, know where you were born etc etc..

 

Fill out the form for expeditied and pay the .. I think its $95 charge..

 

I got mine in 5 business days last may.

[Pilgrim]

Russell, I've had a word with some higher-ups at my former employer.

 

Don't worry about the passport, you'll get special treatment when you return.

Pilgrim

[sgendler]

Russell, you can do the whole thing in a couple of hours plus the however long it takes you to drive to the federal building in west la. I just went through the process.

 

Find a friendly travel agent. I can give you a number if you need. They need to enter a reservation for an international flight into their system and print it out. The trick is, they will never actually purchase the ticket. The flight should be for about 1 week after you want to go get your passport. If you have an imminent flight, they'll give you same day service. The only evidence you need for the flight is the travel agent reservation.

 

Next, you call the passport office and make an appointment with the retarded phone scheduling system. Seriously, it is unbelievably dumb. They have morning and afternoon windows. You can theoretically choose any time, but the system only ever offers 3 choices before making you hang up and try again, and it will always offer you the same three choices - 8, 8:30, and 9 in th morning, and 1, 1:30, or 2 in the afternoon, if I recall correctly. It doesn't matter how many humans you talk to or how long you spend on the phone, unless they've fixed it, you MUST accept an appointment in one of those slots. If you call other offices, like in SF, there is an extra step in the menu that let's you choose the start time you prefer, and it works with you from there, but LA's version is screwed and they simply will not listen

 

Assuming you get an appointment you can live with, you just need to show up with a check, the necessary photos, your reservation printout, and a pen for filling out the paperwork. You'll wait 30-60 minutes to hand in your application and then 1-3 hours for the passport to be made. You'll leave with it that day. You'll pay a small fee for same-day service - $75 or so, i seem to recall.

 

 

 

[yabadabapal]

Russell, I got my new pass port a few years ago and paid a fee to expedite the process. Bingo, in 10 days it was at my door.

I did the whole thing at the post office.

[eddd]

Russell, if you go to the post office you won't have to bother getting a picture taken. I'm pretty sure I saw a picture of you on the wall when I was there the last time.

[russell_bynum]

Russell, if you go to the post office you won't have to bother getting a picture taken. I'm pretty sure I saw a picture of you on the wall when I was there the last time.

 

Yeah, but all of "those" pictures use the alias that I use for shady transactions: Larry Kachadourian.

 

[EffBee]

Russell, if you go to the post office you won't have to bother getting a picture taken. I'm pretty sure I saw a picture of you on the wall when I was there the last time.

 

Yeah, but all of "those" pictures use the alias that I use for shady transactions: Larry Kachadourian.

 

 

Don't use that name, Russell. He's on the Do Not Fly list. Poor bastard has to use a motorcycle whenever he wants to travel. Try a truly trusted American name like Wurtenberger.

[Lone_RT_rider]

Russell, if you go to the post office you won't have to bother getting a picture taken. I'm pretty sure I saw a picture of you on the wall when I was there the last time.

 

Yeah, but all of "those" pictures use the alias that I use for shady transactions: Larry Kachadourian.

 

 

Don't use that name, Russell. He's on the Do Not Fly list. Poor bastard has to use a motorcycle whenever he wants to travel. Try a truly trusted American name like Wurtenberger.

 

I hear that name is blocked from travel to Ireland due to the large population of sheep.

[Tony_K]

New Zealand

Paradise...

Wurty, Innocent until proven guilty.