Attention World Travelers! check your passport

now

.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs

says it

takes longer than usual to issue new US passports and renew existing passports because

by

record numbers of Americans

Are

going abroad.

Americans travel again post-COVID, Andres Rodriguez, chief community relations officer for Passport Services

the

Stands

Department

said in an interview.

Only in the past winter months has the department

for periods

What

.

process

as much as

500,000 passports per week, including new applications and renewals.

That number is unprecedented

said Rodriguez. It was the busiest year ever for passport issuance, he added.

As delicious as renewed wanderlust

do you feel

for US citizens

tired of the pandemic-era restrictions, the restrictions imposed by a global pandemic

the wave of new applications

new demands create new ones

stretched

on

the thousands of State Department employees who have to process them.

documentation

.

Under the current rush, the citizens’ department warns that the issuance of passports will take a while

eight to eight

11 weeks processing time. Expedited passports, which cost an additional $60, will be taken

five to seven 5-7

to soften. That can take a long time for people eager to board that flight to France or the cruise ship to the Greek Islands.

other

Wait times can only increase as the number of applications rises, Rodriguez said.

So, US officials say, plan your travels early and start finding and inspecting your passports now, or start the process for a first-time blue book now.

Passports for adult US citizens

are last valid

for 10 years, but passports for children under 16 years

expired after obtaining a passport from

only five

years

. Often parents forget to check the different expiration dates on their children’s documents. And some countries, including popular European destinations,

does not accept passports with less more

valid for another six months

on the passport

.

For questions about the process or to review an application, citizens can visit travel.state.gov.

Typically, applications begin growing before spring break and continue through summer, cooling off in the fall. But the rise started much earlier this year.

Officials don’t expect the volume to do that

decrease significantly.

To cope with the flood of passport applications, the State Department says it is “aggressively recruiting and employing staff” for 26 passport offices across the country, for a satellite center in Washington and for telephone helplines.

in California,

the agency works

regional centers in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. These can sometimes issue passports faster for proven urgent travel and only by appointment. But officials warn appointment slots will fill up quickly as the

big

number of passport applications is growing.

Last year, the US government issued 22 million passports, a record and an increase of about 85

% per cent

about 2020, the first year of the pandemic.

“All signs point to a new record this year,” said Rodriguez.