Passport Renewal - it's been 12 weeks so far

[The P]

23 hours ago, The P said:

The passport agency got my renewal on April 12 and I received my not expedited new passport on June 8.

And my old passport arrived in today's mail....June 12.

[wwcruisers]

20 hours ago, The P said:

And my old passport arrived in today's mail....June 12.

We just got our non-expedited passports, 8 weeks to the day that we mailed the renewal forms. Their website had said to expect 10-13 weeks -- so that was a pleasant surprise! 👌

[gonole1972]

Update:  Still no passports.  Cruise is a month away, so we have contacted our congressman for help.  They are working on expediting.  Fingers crossed!

[acct1975]

1 hour ago, gonole1972 said:

Update:  Still no passports.  Cruise is a month away, so we have contacted our congressman for help.  They are working on expediting.  Fingers crossed!

I'm in the same boat (no pun intended). Gong to call the inquiry line next week and see if there is any update before reaching out any further. 

 

Worst comes to worst, I believe that a birth certificate and a driver's license would be sufficient for getting off in Bermuda, right?

[gonole1972]

All persons traveling between the United States and Bermuda are required to present a passport to enter Bermuda or re-enter the United States.

[Charles4515]

44 minutes ago, gonole1972 said:

All persons traveling between the United States and Bermuda are required to present a passport to enter Bermuda or re-enter the United States.

Passports are not required for closed loop cruises from a US port to Bermuda. You posted the requirement for air travel. For a closed loop cruise you can use a photo ID and a birth certificate. 

Edited June 16, 2023 by Charles4515

[gonole1972]

38 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

Passports are not required for closed loop cruises from a US port to Bermuda. You posted the requirement for air travel. For a closed loop cruise you can use a photo ID and a birth certificate. 

Thanks for the clarification.

[Aquahound]

I did expedited service.  They received it on May 9.  Status still says In Process.  

[bonsai3s]

On 6/11/2023 at 5:42 PM, new_cruiser said:

Was the repositioning from one US port to another or ending in Canada or Mexico where one might come back to the US by land (e.g. by car or train) or sea? In that case, a Passport Card would be fine. You can't use one for crossing the border by air but for land or sea crossings from Canada, Mexico, Caribbean and Bermuda, it is a passport.

 

Calling within 14 days of travel is to get an in-person passport appointment. Note, within 14 means travel needs to be less than 14 days away. So if you call, for example, on the 1st to leave on the 15th they will tell you to call back tomorrow. That's what happened when I called. I didn't get any pushback when I called the next day. They gave me an appointment at the nearest passport office for two days before my departure.

 

People who have called closer to departure have in some cases not being able to get an appointment or only having one available at an office far away. 

new_cruiser...I just wanted to say "Thank you" for all your help and detailed information you provided. Can't thank you enough.

 

I followed all if the steps you provided...and yesterday, I got my new passport (renewal)...San Francisco, Dept. of State. Today, we are flying to Singapore. Thanks again!

 

* I hope to share this experience as well.

[CunucuMom]

Recent expedited passport renewal experience:

 

6/8/23:  Mailed to Philadelphia via USPS Priority Mail (printed from home)

6/10:  Received @ Phila Processing Center

6/12:  Check cashed

7/14:  Renewal Approved

7/18:  Arriving today per Informed Delivery.  I had paid for express return shipping. 

 

I didn't lie on the application about my travel date (9/16/23) and was worried that I might not be prioritized but the process went quicker than expected. 

[bassman]

We only had six weeks between cruises to renew. Sent express 6/17, received 6/21 (there was holiday in there so took longer). After two weeks I was so stressed I reached out to our senator for assistance.  Received email from her staff that they requested priority for us.  Received passports yesterday, four weeks to the day.  From horror stories I've read about have to believe it helped.

[BND]

We get notified of what is being delivered in our mail everyday.  Today it shows that tomorrow we're getting something from passport services Tucson which I assume is my renewed passport.  I did not expedite or anything extra and it'll be 9 weeks Friday since it was received by the passport/State Dept office (5/19) via regular mail.    Two days ago my status showed as "in process".  Today it shows "approved".

 

We're doing a b2b in Oct.  10 days NJ to Quebec and 10 days Quebec to NJ so I needed my passport as it's not closed loop.

Edited July 19, 2023 by BND

[BND]

And, I have my new passport.  Now I get to wait for my old one to be returned.

[Ferry_Watcher]

On 6/16/2023 at 4:57 AM, gonole1972 said:

Update:  Still no passports.  Cruise is a month away, so we have contacted our congressman for help.  They are working on expediting.  Fingers crossed!

 

Did you got your passport in time?