Managing Your Passport…

Manage my passport?  What’s to manage, you may be thinking.

Well, nowadays there are lots of restrictions on travel (and I’m not talking about the recent lack of international flights).  Most countries require that you have at least ninety days left on your passport when you arrive to ensure you don’t overstay your visa.

Actually, MANY countries require that your passport be valid for a minimum of six months beyond your return date.  This requires some management of your passport.  If you have a trip coming up within that six-month window, it’s time to renew your passport because it will take more than two months to get your new one.

Now, if you’re like me, you don’t want to spend a dime more for a service than you absolutely have to and that includes renewing your passport.  However, if time is of the essence there are passport facilitation services out there but they aren’t cheap; plan on adding at least another $100 to the cost of the renewal for their service and another $60 for the State Department expedited processing fee.

According to the U.S. State Department website, most people can renew by mail and it typically takes ten to twelve weeks assuming there are no problems.  Obviously, we’re not living in typical times and Covid-19 has caused not just delays in processing but a back log that needs to be overcome.

Bear in mind that a lot of folks have canceled international trips and there is a lot of pent-up demand for travel as countries open up and that will also require a lot of passport renewals.  In fact, some experts are saying that if your passport expires in the next twelve months, it’s time to renew!

Btw…  if you owe more than $2,500 in back child support or more than $53,000 in federal taxes, prepare to have your passport revoked!

Brian

As an avid traveler, Brian has explored and enjoyed cultural encounters in over 40 countries while spending many years refining The Points Game — using credit card sign-up bonuses and other tricks to get nearly free travel.  Getting the most out of every trip is an art and Brian launched My Travel Traxx to help others enjoy the art of travel.