As we come to the conclusion of the semester, the one thing that crosses everyone’s mind… SUMMER VACATION! The days of school, classes, tests, early mornings, and long nights are finally over…well for a few months and what better way to celebrate than to travel as much as you can. I recently decided to get my passport to travel internationally this summer and the process was rather quick (I expected and allotted roughly 2 hours of my day out for it). The entire process took about 25 minutes from start to finish. I filed on the 7th of April and I am currently still waiting for it to return in the mail. The expected return date is roughly 4-6 weeks but as it becomes closer to the summer, they expect this number to increase due to the surge in applications. So what do you need to apply for a passport?
1. Certified Birth Certificate
You can’t apply without it, it’s pretty much a “you have it or you don’t” type deal.
2. Fill out the online application
This will save you time. You will go here to fill out a preliminary wizard that will take you to the proper application to fill out.
3. Bring your license or other government issued identification as well as your social security card just for safe measures.
4. Set an appointment and bring money!
Most post offices require you to make an appointment to apply for your passport due to not having a dedicated person to attend the station all day. Call your local post office to check whether or not you will need to make an appointment or not. The cost is around $170 if you are having your photo taken at the location. If you are providing the photo, please make sure it is by the standards set on the website.
5. Then you wait
This is the most tedious of the entire process, the wait. Generally, your wait is between 4-6 weeks with sometimes a shorter or longer wait.
Happy traveling!
HCXO!