Originally Posted by sullim4

Keep your old passport. I can't overemphasize that enough. Calling the current state of US passport issuance 'dysfunctional' is being too kind. Wait for the fall when processing times tend to get significantly shorter.

I'm heading to Australia at the beginning of June. I renewed my passport before I knew I was traveling - my old one expires in September 2023. I figured I was getting ahead of the curve by applying in December in case we decided to travel to a country that required 6 months of validity. I was wrong and instead my application got stuck in the gears of the bureaucracy and an online system that was not ready to handle the sheer number of applications it received.

I'll be at 14 weeks on Wednesday after being given a 6-9 week estimate when I applied. I got a glimmer of hope this afternoon, as my status changed from "In Process" to "Printed". Until I have my passport in hand, however, I am not going to have a sense of relief.