Renewing Passports online at Travel.State.Gov

[BoxsterCy]

Thought I'd post this as an update from the summer thread on passport applications. The "beta" system the State Department was testing is now a full feature. I filled out my renewal application online last week and just got a confirmation that it has shipped. So less than two weeks and no farting around with mailing in your passport and worrying about it getting lost.

You can only do this for renewals, not first time passports. And you can't do "expedited" although this is maybe just as fast as that , just not guaranteed as fast. If you google up "online application" you'll get all sorts of BS first from companies that want to charge you to do what the government is doing for free (well, not free as you still pay an application fee but no extra charges for something that is now really easy to do yourself). It's does require you to setup up an account but I already had one via the Smart Traveler Program.

Official Government linky:

Renew my Passport Online

This page includes information about our online passport renewal system, and instructions to complete your application.

travel.state.gov

Note, I still had my photo taken at a local photoshop and rather than printing a photo they emailed me the digital file. Since that is sort of the new option they didn't quite know what to charge me so they did some minimum $3 something! The thing about the photo store is they had a little setup with a Sony camera that had a person profile outline so the image would likely be 100% up to the passport standards. If you elect to take the photo yourself they have a very detailed photo guide in the application. If you have to pause to take the photos you can save the application and pick it up later.

 

[ISUCyclones2015]

I am about to go through this process myself as my passport expires next year. Was also planning on doing the photo at a shop or somewhere with a background but I suppose my walls are white now.

Did you just do it or received your passport already? Curious what the lead time is, I know it says 6 weeks but looking for actuals.

 

[JP4CY]

I also did a global entry card this year and it was approved/setup up CBP appt/card arrived fast.

 

[BoxsterCy]

Let me put in a plug for the governments Smart Traveler Program. The link and their summary is below. I generally register my trips to Mexico, basically dates, where I am staying and contact info like my cell and emergency contact. If my passport was stolen or lost and I had to go to the nearest consultant office it would expedite them finding my info and me proving that I am indeed Mr. BoxsterCy US Citizen because my trip and info would already be registered and easy for them to access my agenda and passport # etc.

Smart Traveler Enrollment Program​

About the service
Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) is a free service to allow U.S. citizens and nationals to enroll their trip abroad so the Department of State can accurately and quickly contact them in case of emergency.

Benefits

• Get real time updates about health, weather, safety, and security in the country.
• Plan ahead using information from the local U.S. embassy.
• Help the embassy or consulate contact you if there's an emergency like a natural disaster, civil unrest, or a family emergency.

Time to complete: 20 minutes

https://mytravel.state.gov/s/step?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAo5u6BhDJARIsAAVoDWulySh1OE9fdmGa9K6_AG30HVBd4xlOPQzG-9qA2NZMGRLtbY-eJpwaAqg_EALw_wcB

 

[TitanClone]

I got my new one about a month ago. Took a picture in front of a wall then used https://www.adobe.com/express/feature/image/remove-background to clean up the background. They accepted it and had the passport in under 3 weeks.

 

[BoxsterCy]

I am about to go through this process myself as my passport expires next year. Was also planning on doing the photo at a shop or somewhere with a background but I suppose my walls are white now.

Did you just do it or received your passport already? Curious what the lead time is, I know it says 6 weeks but looking for actuals.

I filled out the application online last Friday. Today they emailed me that my new passport had shipped. Doesn't get much faster than that. Weak link is the Post Office at this point but mailing it in is worse. Assuming 5-day delivery this whole thing might be 10-days for me. That's a big wow for me as I was expecting closer to a month.

 

[Cycsk]

I also did a global entry card this year and it was approved/setup up CBP appt/card arrived fast.

Too many people are getting Global Entry. Last time I used it in Chicago, I had to wait 5 minutes to get an open kiosk.

 

[Deere2004]

Has anybody used CLEAR? I'm unclear about the pros and cons. It seems like it's not a government agency?

 

[1SEIACLONE]

We redid your a couple of years ago, went down to the local PO and had everything taken care of in less than 20 minutes. Took them about 3 weeks to get it back in January 2022.

Its amazing how many people like to travel but do not have a passport, see a lot of them on cruises. Folks they last 10 years and are something like $110 dollars, well worth it.

 

[Cycsk]

Has anybody used CLEAR? I'm unclear about the pros and cons. It seems like it's not a government agency?

I have CLEAR. At some airports, they "clearly" have a preference for CLEAR and aggressively channel you to it. At others, it doesn't seem to be emphasized. Requires a personal attendant to administer the digital facial recognition test and take you to the TSA checkpoint (ahead of the TSA Pre-check-only masses). Seems like it might be an advanced version of TSA Pre-check that will eventually reinstate the airport social hierarchy for those of us with CLEAR.

 

[1UNI2ISU]

I'd like to thank you for the reminder that my passport expires next year. Appreciated.

 

[matclone]

We are happy with TSA.

 

[BoxsterCy]

We redid your a couple of years ago, went down to the local PO and had everything taken care of in less than 20 minutes. Took them about 3 weeks to get it back in January 2022.

Its amazing how many people like to travel but do not have a passport, see a lot of them on cruises. Folks they last 10 years and are something like $110 dollars, well worth it.

Maybe too crowded in big urban areas and not all offices do them but your option is a good one for a lot of folks especially outside of bigger urban areas.

You can look up the nearest office for in person here by your zipcode.

Where to Apply for a Passport Nationwide

 

[BoxsterCy]

I'd like to thank you for the reminder that my passport expires next year. Appreciated.

Glad you noticed!

I had an embarrassing renewal 10 years ago. Was registering my trip and had passport out and noticed the expiration was like 10 days off and I was flying in 10 days to Mexico. Big oops. Was able to get an appt with the passport office in Mpls to do an in person expedited renewal and got it just in time. Was a miracle I was able to get an appt. Had to return a few days later to pick it up. It's one of the regional centers that can print a passport right there after some processing time. The next nearest office to do that is Chicago but I only lived 3 miles from the Mpls one otherwise I had a canceled trip. I actually knew the security guard for the fed building and we chatted some. He said they have people from the Dakotas and Iowa there every week with the same last minute oops which made me feel better about being so careless about it.

 

[ISUCyclones2015]

Too many people are getting Global Entry. Last time I used it in Chicago, I had to wait 5 minutes to get an open kiosk.

Then you get all the people who don't understand it's all facial recognition and it is FAST and don't read the "please proceed to the Global Entry Agent" or whatever it says. No need to even pull out the passport anymore.

 

[Cycsk]

Then you get all the people who don't understand it's all facial recognition and it is FAST and don't read the "please proceed to the Global Entry Agent" or whatever it says. No need to even pull out the passport anymore.

Noobs.

The only direct interaction with a live agent is when you hand them the printout from the Global Entry kiosk as you leave the baggage area. If you only have carryon luggage, you can leave the plane from your international flight and be at the gate of your domestic flight connection (having gone through TSA Precheck or CLEAR again) in less than an hour.

P.S. It is painful to remember how arduous it was in the past. Some aspects of travel have actually gotten much, much better.

 

[Trice]

My wife and I did this a couple months ago. Our passports were expired but these were renewals.

We submitted ours within a couple hours of one another on the same night. She got her passport back within two weeks. Mine lagged behind for maybe 7-10 days, for whatever reason. Still much faster than the old way.

 

[brianhos]

Anyone know how to renew a passport that has been expired for 5+ years? Just apply for a brand new one?

 

[ISUCyclones2015]

Anyone know how to renew a passport that has been expired for 5+ years? Just apply for a brand new one?

Yes the range for allowing renewal is 9-15 years from date of issuance exactly. Otherwise a brand new one.

 

[BoxsterCy]

Yes the range for allowing renewal is 9-15 years from date of issuance exactly. Otherwise a brand new one.

2015 #travelpro