Canary Islands Holidays

Sometimes life has a way of throwing some interesting curve balls our way. We think everything is going great and then all of a sudden something happens and we have to jump on a plane to Europe on short notice. If you don’t have a passport or it is expired, expedited passport application services can make this problem go away in a snap.

First it is helpful to realize that the Department of State processes this paperwork each and every day and it is necessary to take one’s place in line so to speak. In the fiscal year 2009, nearly 13.5 million passports were completed. What is considered fast in government documentation is not necessarily the same as the overnight delivery options that are available when it comes to online shopping. Currently a rush document from the Department of State takes two to three weeks to receive.

The two to three week period is considered door-to-door, meaning that it accounts for time in the mail in each direction. There are some ways to short-cut this a bit, such as taking the document directly to a designated passport center, generally the local post office. In some cases, persons apply for a passport in the traditional manner but then request expedition due to a change in travel plans. In this case, it will take about five to seven days to track online the document’s process after asking for a rush on it.

The whole system is powered by fees, fees and more fees. A regular passport will cost $75 and $25 added for the standard processing. If a passport card is added, tack on another $20 to the order. The government offers a small break in the pricing for minors, but all processing fees remain the same. Renewals services are slightly less expensive.

To receive an expedited passport, expect to pony up and additional $60 and this can only be done by applicants within the United States. It is not possible for a citizen residing in a foreign country to request expedition. Add to the cost, which is now $180, the Department of State’s strong emphasis on using overnight delivery to receive the new passport book. After spending the extra money to rush the paperwork process, it simply does not make sense to rely on regular mail service to receive the much anticipated document.

Overnight delivery is not part of the fee structure and will cost another $15 or so. We know, the fees really start to add up, but the overnight shipping is a must for security reasons. Allowing this kind of documentation to travel through regular mail is insane. It is just too important and too sensitive to risk losing.

If expedited service is requested, the form that has to be filled out is the DS-82. This is in addition to the regular forms and does not replace the standard application. When mailing in the forms and documents, be sure to write “expedite” very large and clear on the outside of the envelope. The agents are trained to look for this and will make sure that the envelope is rushed through processing.

Using %expedited U S passport services is a great way to get the passport in hand quick. For some people, the extra fees are worth it just to know that the turnaround time will not be so long. If these services are not used, the application just goes into the pile and has to work its way to the top. If you are lucky, the passport will arrive in about two months. Sometimes, that is just too long to wait.