OK, now I understand. @:-)

I don't plan to mail my passport anywhere anytime soon, as I have a short trip to Buenos Aires planned for early September, and I might seek out the US Embassy there. In any case, it's not urgent yet, with a few blank pages still left in my passport. If I do end up mailing it at some point, I want to allow a comfortable amount of time to get it back and not have to sweat it.

They hassled me a bit and suggested coming back two days later at the Tokyo embassy last time I needed extra pages, but I persisted and after making me sit twiddling my thumbs for about an hour, they did it while I was waiting.

So I agree with the consensus: while, it's not always instantaneous outside the U.S. it is generally way better than doing it domestically.

When I get a new passport, I always ask for the bigger one.

Can you get it done in person in Washington D.C., or is the only option to mail it the Charlston?

Found a list local offices if you are traveling within 14 days:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/abo...ncies_913.html

I think they will do amendments/add pages in DC....

You need to make an appointment at the local offices, if traveling within 14 days.

As for the DC office, that may be handy if you live in/near DC, or visit frequently.... but not so handy otherwise.

Ditto for Tallinn Estonia. The embassy processes visa M/W/F, but you can go in on Tuesday or Thursday and be the only person in the place. Extra pages are one of the only things that are still free...

I get four stamps ever time I go to meetings in Helsinki, so I am eating through pages at a pretty quick pace.

Sam

Strictly speaking it's traveling or getting a visa within 14 days (though you sometimes have to point the latter out). We got a same day name change for Mrs Chartreuse by booking a visa appointment at a Consulate the next day.

That said, whether it's US or UK I think a general rule of thumb is that things are quicker, easier and less bureaucratic at a consulate abroad than they are at home.

3 weeks
 

Just got mine back. I sent it out on July 8th via Priority mail to Charleston and got it back on Friday, July 29th.

Keba

Sent mine out on July 11th received it back on Aug 4th. (right around 3 weeks)

To add to the chorus: 3 weeks (they even mailed it priority on the return).

For the OP's question - they added 2 additional page sections this time around. (which isn't as good as the 48 I'd requested with my renewal, but will suffice)

so as the OP i am pleased to report that i now have new pages. i sent it overnight mail to Charlotte w/ the $60 expedite fee and return mail slip enclosed. i got it back 7 days later and they paid for express return mail. now i have 2 more years on this passport and hopefully won't have to add pages for the third time!

Why all the fuss about new pages? It sounds convenient and seems to save money, but it is a false economy.

More visa pages means immigration inspectors in foreign lands spend that much more time thumbing through your book looking for evidence of places that may lead to an extra question or two, and a further delay. If you have less than five years remaining, better to get a new book.

I had extra pages added when I lived in Asia. But only once. It wasn't worth the additional headaches.
--
13F

^

I "only" have one extra insert, but even that can be annoying at times. Crossing into Botswana once I remember the border agent spent a good 15 minutes pouring over every stamp I ever had, many of which had faded and become difficult to make out.

My father, after his third insert, got sick of the buldge (held together by an overburdened cover and elastic bands), and constant delays (including questioning the authenticity of the passport). He now just gets new passports after the first insert fills.

In addition to being able to get free and quick inserts abroad, another benefit of having passports issued abroad is that they seem to automatically issue the 48-page version. My last passport was issued in JNB and without even asking I was given the 48 page version (it was also the really old generation, with the number in holes on the front; very qauint).

And if IIRC, when the new biometric passport are issued to the general public (I believe they are now being issued to DOS diplomatic staff), extra pages will become a thing of the past. When space runs out, an entirely new passport will have to be issued. I also remember reading that passports will ONLY be able to be issued by the national passport centres, with foreign missions and other offices only being able to issue temporary travel documents with short half-lives. I imagine expedite fees will skyrocket.

I added 4. The Passport Division themselves didn't mind but some immigration staff that I went through seemed to complain a bit because it was quite hard for them to find the right visa even though I already told them which page they could find.

Why? The biometric portion is merely a chip encoding unique ID about you; a redudant electronic picture.

Expedite Will-Call is our friend. ^