Travel Technology

It looks like the next six months won’t be anything like the last six months for travelers trying to get their passport processed or renewed.

The State Department has announced that processing times as of October 2 are running eight to 11 weeks, and expedited applications five to seven weeks. 

“Processing times begin when we receive your application at a passport agency or center and do not include mailing times,” the agency explained.

“It may take up to two weeks for us to receive your application after you mail it to us, and up to two weeks for you to receive your completed passport after we mail it to you.”

No mea culpa necessary

While it would be easy to point fingers at the passport office, this wasn’t their doing as much as it was the high demand that Americans created when we came out of the pandemic and wanted to travel internationally.

Between October 2022 and September 2023, the State Department issued more than 24 million passport books and cards, the most ever in our nation’s history.

The agency says now that everything is going in the right direction, it’s addressing the increased workload through a number of efforts. 

“We are aggressively recruiting and hiring across our passport agencies and centers. Our passport team members nationwide contribute tens of thousands of hours of overtime a month to issue the millions of passports sought by traveling Americans,” the agency said.

“We have opened a satellite office to help process the large number of applications we are receiving.”

Need an update or going somewhere within 14 days?

The agency’s phone lines are pretty jammed and wait times could be long, so rather than phoning, you’d be better off checking the status of your passport application online or signing up for updates via email.

However, if you’re in a semi- or real tight squeeze, two suggestions:

1. Many post offices, libraries, and local government offices are hosting passport acceptance fairs to assist you. Most events are for first-time customers and children using Form DS-11 to apply. A full list of October and November acceptance fair dates can be found here.

2. If you have international travel within 14 calendar days, call 1-877-487-2778 to make an appointment

With the threat of a government shutdown, anyone traveling should take note that things could change in a hurry and in a big way.

To find out just where and how much, ConsumerAffairs reached out to Katy Nastro, travel expert with Going.com, and here’s her take: 

Areas within travel most impacted by the shutdown

Air travel: For those who are traveling in the near future, flight operations will appear business as usual. However, both TSA agents and ATC personnel will be working without paychecks until the shutdown ends.

National parks: Past shutdowns have led to parks closing or being kept open by a skeleton crew.

Passports: Passport processing is already at an all-time high of 10-13 weeks, and while operations will continue, certain agencies based in government buildings may be impacted.

What the implications are if the shutdown is long

“The biggest takeaway is that the longer this occurs, the greater the impact will be on the travel industry, even if people don’t see an immediate difference on October 1,” Nastro said. The biggest dominoes to fall could include the following: 

Air travel: As both workers feel the strain of no pay, we may encounter longer security lines and delayed flights if enough personnel decide to call in sick or are burned out.

Additionally, hiring and training Air Traffic Control personnel will be put on hold which will cause longer delays in this area that is already struggling with staffing issues. The Department of Transportation sees other possible air-related categories that could add further pressure such as field inspections and airworthiness directives.

National Parks: If there is a significant shutdown, parks will be left unmaintained, so things like trash pickup, snow removal, general safety for parkgoers and animals alike – all would be put on hold and may cause longer-term effects.

If you’ve been considering a trip this fall to a national park, you might want to consider alternate plans if this moves forward.

Passports: If the passport agency is based in a government-run building and that building should shutter due to the shutdown, this could add further delay and inconveniences to those looking to travel internationally.

The good news is that you can still mail in your passport or head to an acceptance facility to send in an application to begin the process. 

What anyone traveling should do to stay on top of the situation

If you are traveling anywhere in or outside of the U.S., the best method to stay abreast of what’s happening with your flight, train ride, etc. is to download the app of the airline or train (e.g. Amtrak) that you’re using. You can also use FlightAware.com.

And, don’t forget the weather. The Department of Transportation issued weather warnings that may also impact flight schedules for Boston (BOS), New York (EWR, JFK, LGA), Philadelphia (PHL), Washington, DC (BWI, DCA, IAD), San Francisco (SFO), Florida (FLL, MIA, MCO), and Chicago (MDW, ORD).

You can stay on top of those via the FAA’s Daily Air Traffic Report or at FlightAware.com.

Before you know it, going to Europe won’t be quite as easy as showing your passport at the airport.

Starting in 2024, the European Union (EU) will require citizens of 60 different countries to get pre-approval through the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) if they want to cross its borders.

As the EU explains it, the process is pretty simple. An applicant must submit travel documentation – typically, a passport – along with the following:

• Personal information including your name(s), when and where you were born, nationality, home address, parents’ first names, email address and phone number;

• How much education you’ve completed;

• Your current occupation;

• What EU countries you’ll be traveling to; 

• Details about any criminal convictions, any past travels to war or conflict zones, and whether you have recently been subject of a decision requiring you to leave the territory of any country

Applicants will also have to fork over $8 as part of the process. Applicants who are under 18 or above 70 years of age are exempt from payment. 

Hurry up and wait?

The EU’s announcement is pretty clear as to its intentions, but the announcement failed to specify when in 2024 this requirement will begin. Could be January, could be August -- who knows at this point?

But, like many new government processes, travelers should expect some fits and starts. The EU said its best advice is for visitors to apply “well in advance” just to be safe.

It said that most applications should be processed within a matter of minutes and responded to within four days, but some could take much longer. That could be as much as 14 days if an applicant is requested to provide additional information or documentation, or up to 30 days if they are invited to an interview.  

Once you jump through those hoops and authorization is rubber stamped, however, you’re set for three years or until your passport expires.

In the meantime, U.S. passport processing times continue to lag

Since going on record in March about the trainwreck the State Department admitted it was experiencing processing passport applications, the department has gone mum. 

However, a nudge from ThePointsGuy got an agency representative to take that question mark off its page for the moment. The officials said that, as of July, passport applicants can expect routine passport service to take anywhere from 10 to 13 weeks, expedited service seven to nine weeks, plus two more weeks for processing and mailing the passport to the applicant.

"We are working hard to get back to our pre-pandemic processing times by the end of... 2023 [by] increasing hiring and training, authorizing overtime, and investing in automation and other technologies," the State Department official said.

"We are also working to improve our communications with the public so that U.S. citizens apply earlier and understand the passport application process."

Going overseas this year? Got your passport? If you don’t, you may be in for a longer than usual wait. The U.S. Department of State says 2023 is on track to set the record for the most applications ever. 

During some weeks this winter, the Department received more than 500,000 applications, another record and one that exceeded its official projections. But the year’s not half over and the Department expects another flurry as travel season approaches.

Like lots of other businesses, it too needs all the workers it can find to process applications and it’s aggressively recruiting the people who can move a passport application through the system and back to the applicant. Until it can hire all the people they need, the Department said it opened a satellite office and is asking its employees to work tens of thousands of hours of overtime a month.

The Department asks that all Americans check their passport expiration date before making any definitive plans for international travel, and to take action to renew their passport well in advance of international travel this year.

What does “well in advance” mean?

The current passport processing times are eight to 11 weeks for routine processing and five to seven weeks for expedited processing, which costs an additional $60 per application – a fee certainly worth paying if someone is trying to head out by late May or early June. But, again, those wait times are only projected ones and could change quickly. 

It’s important to note that those processing times also do not include delivery times and don't start until an application is in the Department’s hands. In other words, you should probably tack on another week for your passport to get back to you.

Calling won’t do much good, either. The Department says that some customers are facing extended wait times when calling the National Passport Information Center, but it’s taking steps to improve that aspect, too. 

“We encourage customers who have questions about how to apply or the status of their passport application to visit our website, travel.state.gov, which has extensive information and allows customers to check the status of their passport application and sign up for updates via email,” the Department said in a statement.

“We are committed to transparency and will continue to provide regular updates about passport processing times, and to encourage Americans to apply for their passport well in advance of any planned international travel to avoid last-minute issues.”

Because of the weather, nearness, and value, Mexico has become a Spring Break favorite over the last few years, but it’s also become a hotbed of crime and kidnapping.

So much so that the U.S. Department of State has decided that the situation is too dicey for Americans right now, slapping “Do Not Travel” restrictions on six Mexican states, and “Reconsider” or “Exercise Extreme Precaution” warnings on 25 more.

The only two states that got the green light are Campeche and Yucatan, both in the Yucatan Peninsula and home to tourist areas in Chichen Itza, Merida, Uxmal, and Valladolid.

A full list of restrictions is available here.

“Transnational criminal organizations compete in the border area to establish narco-trafficking and human smuggling routes. Violent crime and gang activity are common. Travelers should remain on main highways and avoid remote locations,” the Department wrote.

“Of particular concern is the high number of homicides in the non-tourist areas of Tijuana. Most homicides appeared to be targeted. However, criminal organization assassinations and territorial disputes can result in bystanders being injured or killed. U.S. citizens and LPRs have been victims of kidnapping.”

If you decide to go, well…

The Department doesn’t throw travel restrictions around lightly, but it can’t stand in the way of anyone who’s compelled to cross the border into Mexico.

It simply suggests that if someone does, they adhere to the same restrictions that government employees have in Mexico: don’t travel between cities after dark, don’t hail taxis on the street, avoid traveling alone, especially in remote areas.

The agency also suggests that travelers download its app and sign up for the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, a free service that allows U.S. citizens traveling or living abroad to receive the latest security updates from the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate and enables the U.S. embassy or consulate to contact the traveler in an emergency. ​

Despite near record-high gas prices and jammed airports, millions of Americans are expected to take a trip over the upcoming July 4th holiday.

AAA has predicted that 47.9 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday period, which extends from June 30 through July 4. That’s an increase of 3.7% over holiday travelers in 2021 and could approach the travel volume in 2019, the last year before the pandemic.

Even though gas prices have recently retreated from $5 a gallon, the number of people who will travel by car could hit a new record. AAA estimates that 42 million Americans will hit the road.

Airline turmoil

The turmoil that is gripping the airline industry could be a factor for those who choose to travel by ground instead of air. Over the just-completed Father’s Day-Juneteenth holiday, the nation’s airlines canceled about 5,000 flights -- in some cases because they couldn’t staff enough flight crews.

On Sunday – a day on which many travelers were trying to return home – airlines canceled 900 flights, with travelers using Delta Air Lines being the hardest hit.

"A variety of factors continue to impact our operations, including challenges with air traffic control, weather, and unscheduled absences in some work groups," Delta said in a statement. “Canceling a flight is always our last resort, and we sincerely apologize to our customers for the inconvenience to their travel plans." 

Airlines have been slowly paring back their flight schedules over the last two months because of a lack of personnel, including pilots. Even so, AAA says Americans are still in the mood to get out of the house after more than two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The volume of travelers we expect to see over Independence Day is a definite sign that summer travel is kicking into high gear,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel. “Earlier this year, we started seeing the demand for travel increase and it’s not tapering off. People are ready for a break and despite things costing more, they are finding ways to still take that much-needed vacation.”

Gas price movement is unpredictable

As for people driving to their holiday destinations, Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, says it’s hard to know what to expect at the gas pump.

“We are seeing a decline right now, but how long that lasts is hard to know, given wholesale gas prices are up sharply today,” DeHaan told ConsumerAffairs. “I think we could see a decline for another five to eight days, but then prices could bottom out and may inch back up for now. I don't expect much significant relief barring a recession as demand for gasoline remains high.”

President Biden’s request to Congress to suspend the federal gasoline tax for three months is unlikely to be passed before the holiday and would only lower prices by 18 cents a gallon. As of today, the national average price of regular gas is $4.95, down only slightly from its recent record high of $5.01 a gallon.

The U.S. Department of State has updated its International Travel Recommendations. While the agency stopped short of saying it’s overloaded and backed up, it did urge U.S. citizens who are thinking about going overseas anytime in 2022 to check their passport expiration date as soon as possible to see if the document needs to be renewed. If that's the case, then officials say to submit applications far ahead of travel dates.

The current processing time for routine passport service is 8-11 weeks, and that estimate goes down to 5-7 weeks for expedited service. That's a bit quicker than a year ago but nowhere near what it was in pre-pandemic 2019. The Department of State says its estimates do not factor in mailing times to and from its offices.

"They begin the day we receive an application at a passport agency (not the day a customer applies for a passport at an acceptance facility or drops an application off in the mail), and they end the day we issue the passport,” the agency stated.

Even if your passport doesn’t expire for a year or so, and you don’t have any international travel plans penciled in, officials recommend that you go ahead and get it renewed “well in advance” to avoid any last-minute problems or further bureaucratic backups.

Make your checklist

If your travel plans call for a passport renewal, here are the things you should take note of before you begin the process:

Adults with valid passports expiring within one year should renew by mail. 

Applicants who can convince the passport office that their travel is “urgent” – meaning within five days – can try to make an appointment at one of the department's 26 regional passport agencies.  

Applicants with life and death emergencies can make an appointment within three days of travel. In that situation, applicants have to call 877-487-2778 to make an appointment and will be required to provide proof of travel and proof of the life-or-death emergency at the time they apply.

Applicants may schedule an appointment to apply for a passport if they are traveling within two weeks or need a foreign visa within four weeks. However, the Department cautions travelers that the appointment can not occur more than five business days before the date of travel or ten business days if a visa is required to get into a certain country.

Keep in mind that many countries require six months’ passport validity for entry. China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Brazil, Venezuela, and Bolivia all enforce this rule. There may be others that adopt the policy, so travelers should do their homework no matter where they’re headed.

Be sure to check COVID-19 restrictions

Officials are asking travelers to do their part by checking COVID-19 conditions and restrictions for their destinations in advance. While restrictions and conditions change daily, U.S. embassies and consulates around the world are trying to keep up with the latest country-specific COVID-19-related information on their websites.

Travelers should also research potential international travel destinations on the International Travel section of travel.state.gov and review the current Travel Advisory and Country Information Page for each country. 

The U.S. is throwing its doors wide open to fully vaccinated foreign travelers. The White House announced that it will be easing restrictions for both international air travel and land travel effective November 8.

"This announcement and date applies to both international air travel and land travel. This policy is guided by public health, stringent, and consistent,” said White House assistant press secretary in a Twitter post.

The Biden administration had hinted at this shift in late September when it relaxed restrictions on travel to Great Britain. That resulted in a surge in bookings for transatlantic flights, with Virgin Atlantic reporting a 91% increase.

Travel industry breathes sigh of relief

The move couldn’t have come at a better time. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), air travelers were becoming increasingly frustrated with the COVID-19 travel restrictions. Nearly 70% of the respondents in a survey commissioned by IATA felt that most country borders should be opened now -- up 12% from a June 2021, survey.

The whole travel industry has to be happy too. It tried to reason with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) earlier this year, claiming that the agency’s guidelines that fully vaccinated people should continue to avoid travel were unreasonable. 

“U.S. Travel has long urged a reopening of the U.S. land borders, and we applaud the Biden administration’s plan to ease entry restrictions for vaccinated visitors. This action will bring a welcome surge in travel from our two top source markets of inbound travel,” U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow said in a statement emailed to ConsumerAffairs. 

Dow said that the declines in international visitation since the start of the pandemic have cost the U.S. dearly. According to his organization’s data, there was upwards of $250 billion lost in export income and more than a million U.S. jobs. He said the closed Canadian and Mexican land borders alone cost the U.S. economy nearly $700 million per month.

“The full reopening of international travel to the United States to fully vaccinated individuals is overdue and will provide a jolt to the U.S. economy, travel businesses large and small, and to destinations across America,” Dow stated.

What kind of deals will international travelers find when they come?

After car rental prices spiked earlier this year, one industry analyst says they’re back to normal again. That’s due to there being less demand since the summer travel season is over and children being, for the most part, back in school.

Scott Keyes at Scott’s Cheap Flights told ConsumerAffairs that a recent search for car rental prices included daily deals in Denver and Nashville for $43, $32 in Honolulu, $26 in Los Angeles, and $11 in Miami. 

Keyes said that even Thanksgiving rates were relatively cheap. Christmas and New Year’s were generally double or triple the price, but he said that happens every year.

Hotels, however, are a different story. In comments to TravelPulse, Twiddy & Company CEO Ross Twiddy said reservations in August were up 165% for the Christmas and New Year periods when compared to 2017-2019 averages. 

Naturally, the laws of supply and demand are causing hotel prices to climb. A spokesperson for Priceline told CNBC that the average daily rate at hotels has increased by 14% over the pre-pandemic 2019 holiday season, and they expect that the increased demand will cause prices to continue to scale upward.

Are you planning on going out of the country anytime soon? If you don’t have an updated passport, get ready to wait a while because there’s a serious backlog of applications at the passport office.

How long is the waiting period? The agency says applicants need to allow at least six months before any planned international travel. It says some of the backlog is a result of prioritizing customers with life-or-death emergencies. 

The first recommended steps

According to a passport application guide published by Scott’s Cheap Flights, anyone planning to fly out of the U.S. should first check their current passport if they have one. Passports are good for 10 years for those over the age of 16; they’re good for 5 years for those under 16. Scott Keyes, founder of the airfare deal service, says there’s more to check than the expiration date though. 

“Many countries require that your passport be valid for 3-6 months beyond your travel dates, and that you have at least one blank page (it varies by country, some require more),” Keyes told ConsumerAffairs.

“For example, if you roll up to the airport for a trip to any of the countries in Europe’s Schengen Area and your passport isn’t valid for at least three months beyond your trip, you’re gonna get some bad news.”

The Department of State Travel says appointments must be scheduled by phone: Call 1-877-487-2778 or 1-888-874-7793 TDD/TTY from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. ET, Mondays through Fridays. The agency’s appointment line is closed on weekends and federal holidays. 

What to expect after that

The U.S. Passport office says applicants should expect delays of up to 18 weeks (4 ½) months from the day an application is submitted to the day a new passport is received by the applicant. Mind you, it might not take that long, but the agency is playing it safe. 

It says the 18-week timeframe includes up to 12 weeks for processing and up to 6 weeks for mailing times on the front and back end. Regarding those mailing times, the agency says processing times begin the day it receives your application, not the day you mail it. If you’re in a hurry, an additional $60 will get you expedited service, but it won’t save you much time -- only about six weeks. 

“If that’s still not soon enough, there are two dozen passport agencies around the US where you can get an Urgent Travel or Life-or-Death Emergency appointment,” Keyes suggested. “To cast the widest net, visit the USPS passport site and look for available appointments within 100 miles of your zip code.” 

Here are some other suggestions the Passport office offers:

• Send your application via trackable mail so you can track your application before it enters the office’s system. The agency said that can be done regardless of whether you apply at an acceptance facility or by mail.

• Pay an extra $17.56 for 1-2 day delivery for the return of your completed passport.

• Use the agency’s Self-Service Tools Online. This will allow you to get immediate answers to your questions, and you can check online for your passport status. However, consumers should note that customer service representatives do not give status updates over the phone. 

The U.K. government announced Wednesday that fully vaccinated travelers from the United States and European Union will no longer have to quarantine in order to visit the country. However, visitors will still be subject to COVID-19 testing requirements.

"We're helping reunite people living in the US and European countries with their family and friends in the UK,'' Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced on Twitter.

The U.K. still requires a pre-departure test and a test upon arrival, and those returning from the country to the U.S. will be required to show a negative COVID-19 test or proof of recent recovery from COVID-19 in order to board a flight.

U.S. doesn’t plan to reciprocate 

At this time, the U.S. government says it doesn’t plan to drop travel restrictions because of the rise of the Delta variant. 

“Given where we are today … with the delta variant, we will maintain existing travel restrictions at this point for a few reasons," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a press briefing Monday. "The more transmissible delta variant is spreading both here and around the world. Driven by the delta variant, cases are rising here at home, particularly among those who are unvaccinated and appear likely to continue in the weeks ahead.”

The U.K.’s lifting of the quarantine requirement comes at a time of change to U.S. mask recommendations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Tuesday that it now believes that some vaccinated people should wear masks in indoor public spaces, at least in some parts of the country. 

“This pandemic continues to pose a serious threat to the health of all Americans,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told reporters. “Today, we have new science related to the delta variant that requires us to update the guidance regarding what you can do when you are fully vaccinated.”