And while these services also work, they prey on the most desperate travelers. Alwadish refers to them as "black market" courier services. The services have access to appointments set aside by the government to help serve disabled customers, those who are unable to leave work or those who have children, according to David Alwadish, CEO of ItsEasy.Com Passport & Visa Services.īut there's a second group of companies that pre-make appointments and then resell them to desperate travelers at a markup of between $800 and $1,000. They submit your paperwork on your behalf, and you can then pick up your passport in a few days. Use a passport expeditor serviceĬourier or expeditor services charge a fee of anywhere between $150 and $300 to handle your passport application. But my favorite strategy is one almost no one has mentioned in the voluminous coverage of America's passport crisis. I'll also tell you how Park got his wife's passport. Turns out there are a lot of ways to get around the passport logjam, from using a courier service to expediting your passport to contacting your elected representative. "We've also increased the number of lines and people available at the National Passport Information Center and will continue to increase capacity and hours to handle the influx of calls we are receiving."īut you can still get a passport for this summer. "Our staff is working thousands of hours of overtime," said Rachel Arndt, deputy assistant secretary for passport services. But travelers and passport experts say it can drag on for 15 to 18 weeks once you take mailing times into account. It takes 10 to 13 weeks to process a passport application, according to the State Department. The government also has paused its pilot online renewal system to fine-tune it, which some observers say has created a bigger passport backlog. The State Department is on track to break that record this fiscal year. In 2022, the government issued nearly 22 million passports. But the COVID-19 pandemic, plus an unprecedented demand for passports, has extended those waiting times. Usually, processing a passport application or renewal takes only a few weeks. But don't tell anyone! Why does it take so long to get a passport? Each issue is filled with breaking news, deep insights, and exclusive strategies for becoming a better traveler. So they joined thousands of Americans scrambling to get passports during a time of record delays.Ĭheck out Elliott Confidential, the newsletter the travel industry doesn't want you to read. With just two months before they were supposed to leave for Canada, the Parks didn't have enough time to renew the expired passport by mail. "But then I realized that my wife's passport had expired," said Park, a human resources manager from Washington. Richard's passport had another year on it. With locations in cities and towns like Fayetteville, Jonesboro, El Dorado, and more, FedEx Office offers a convenient option for Arkansas residents.Richard and Stephanie Park waited too long to get their passports.Īfter booking airline tickets from Washington, D.C., to Montreal, they checked their travel documents. However, RushMyPassport in Fedex Office customers benefit from expert assistance, reduced delays due to application errors and faster processing. An acceptance agent is still required for those services. You can also apply for new adult passports, child passports, and replacing a lost, stolen, or damaged passport. FedEx Office is your one-stop-shop for passport renewals and name change passport updates. Skip the post office and avoid long lines. Traveling soon? FedEx offers 2-week passport renewal service. Normal business hours for the Western Passport Center are 8:30 am-3:00 pm, Monday through Friday.Ī more convenient option? Use a service like RushMyPassport in FedEx Office. If you need your passport sooner, the only Arkansas passport office that processes same-day passports is the Arkansas Passport Center, located at 191 Office Park Drive in Hot Springs.Īppointments are required to use this service. For an additional $60, there is a 5-week expediting option available. Routine processing at the post office or county clerk is 8-11 weeks at any one of the 67 passport acceptance facilities throughout the state. Arkansas Passport Offices for Standard Processing Take advantage of a quick and seamless process using smart-form applications, perfect passport photos, and secure expedited shipping. Your local FedEx Office provides expedited passport services through RushMyPassport. Arkansas passport applicants now have a convenient way to get their passport fast through FedEx Office.
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