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Current US passport wait? (Merged Threads)

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Old Mar 1, 2022, 6:35 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: CKDGM
Passport Agency Appointments (same day expedited service)
Appointments for same-day expedited service often go quickly. It is best that you schedule your appointment with the passport agency exactly 14 days before your trip. You will want to call the passport number before the center opens at 8am EST as they will have just opened up one day (14 days out) of appointments at all agencies. Appointment times start at 8am. It is important that you have enough buffer in your travel schedule. For example, if you make an appointment for a new passport at 11am and your time of travel is at 2pm, there will not be enough time for you to get your passport. If you book the 8am slot you may have to wait until the end of the business day to get your new passport or it may only be a few hours.

You will want to have your date of travel, time of travel, your flight itinerary number, name of destination, full name of applicant, and applicant's birth city, and the zip code of where you live (to help them find the closest available center with open slots). Use the following steps to increase your chances of success to booking an appointment as they can go very quickly:
  1. 14 days before your trip, you need to schedule an appointment with the passport agency.
  2. At 7:55 am call the passport number 877-487-2778 (This have to be exactly 14 days before your plane ticket or less. If less, it will get harder to find an appointment)
  3. Click 1 (For English)
  4. Click 2 (New Passport)
  5. Continue to Click 7 to repeat, and keep doing this while watching your watch or using Time.gov to get the exact time down to the second.
  6. When your it hits exactly 8:00 am Click 2 (for traveling within 14 days option)
  7. There will be a delay of 3-4 second and you will wait for the next available agent. If you are very lucky, you will be put straight through to an agent. You may be waiting few minutes or maybe as long as 15-20 minutes.
  8. If you did not click 1 exactly at 8 am, you may have to wait for more than an hour and half
After the appointment slot has been reserved you will be provided with a unique identifier code and reservation number. These details will also be emailed to you.

Credit: chgoeditor

Known office locator numbers (not complete)
Note: The office code (first two digits of your application locator number returned by Passport Status) is the office reviewing your documents and approving your application. It isn't necessarily the address you mailed the forms to (always Irving or Philadelphia for renewals) nor the facility where the book is physically printed and mailed (often Tucson or Hot Springs).

10: Boston
11: NYC
12: Honolulu
14: Stamford, CT
15: Portsmouth, NH
17: Aurora, CO
18: Chicago
19: Washington, DC
20-29: Portsmouth, NH
34-39: Charleston
40-42: New Orleans, LA
45: Portsmouth, NH
50: Los Angeles, CA
51: Miami
53: Seattle
54: Minneapolis
55: Dallas
56: Detroit
57: San Francisco
58: Philadelphia, PA
61-64: Tucson
65: Hot Springs, AR
67: San Juan, PR
68: Portsmouth, NH
69: Portsmouth, NH
71: US embassies/consulates abroad (possibly Portsmouth, NH)
74: Atlanta
75: St Albans, VT
76: San Diego, CA
77: Buffalo, NY
78: El Paso, TX
79: Houston, TX
80: Special Issuance Agency ("Issues diplomatic, official, service, and no-fee regular passports, and facilitates visa processing for those traveling on behalf of the U.S. government.")
95: Online

A list of agencies and their locator numbers is listed on this page under the heading, "List of passport agencies and centers with locator numbers."

H/T Nayef, txviking, and various individual posts both here and on Reddit. If you have a locator not in the above list, check the return address agency name or postmark/ZIP on your returned citizenship docs, or passport card if you applied for one, which may be the processing office, although the address itself is likely to be a PO Box in Sterling, VA in all cases (which appears to be a lockbox location that processes mail for all locations). The passport books are printed in fewer locations, often Hot Springs and Tucson, and may not correspond to the agency where the processing steps occurred. If it doesnt match the list above, please add or correct.
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Current US passport wait? (Merged Threads)

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Old Feb 6, 2023 | 4:52 pm
  #2221  
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Just noticed processing times have been updated
Expedited: 5-7 weeks
Routine: 8-11 weeks

My status has been "Approved" since Feb 1. Says I should receive on or around 2/7 (unchanged), but now says routine service 8-11 weeks where it used to say 6-9
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Old Feb 6, 2023 | 6:07 pm
  #2222  
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Originally Posted by BusinessElite25
Just noticed processing times have been updated
Expedited: 5-7 weeks
Routine: 8-11 weeks

My status has been "Approved" since Feb 1. Says I should receive on or around 2/7 (unchanged), but now says routine service 8-11 weeks where it used to say 6-9
Should've waited to post because passport just arrived.

December 13 - arrived from Intl trip
December 14 - sent in renewal by mail
December 19 - received and in process
February 1 - approved
February 6- Passport arrived from national passport center NH, USPS says sent from Tucson Feb 3

I will be able to travel on the 16th, yay!
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Old Feb 7, 2023 | 10:00 am
  #2223  
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Originally Posted by BusinessElite25
Just noticed processing times have been updated
Expedited: 5-7 weeks
Routine: 8-11 weeks

My status has been "Approved" since Feb 1. Says I should receive on or around 2/7 (unchanged), but now says routine service 8-11 weeks where it used to say 6-9
I just called the toll free number and was told that, if I applied before February 6, 2023, the original 6-9 weeks processing time still applies. I am now at seven weeks. Hoping to get my passport soon.
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Old Feb 8, 2023 | 8:01 am
  #2224  
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Two youth passports, one "renewal" and one new.

December 27th: Application Submitted
February 7: Both Received

Just about six weeks to the day. Status checking was generally unreliable, shown as "processing" up until they showed up via USPS.
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Old Feb 8, 2023 | 8:16 am
  #2225  
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Originally Posted by gernabae
Two youth passports, one "renewal" and one new.

December 27th: Application Submitted
February 7: Both Received

Just about six weeks to the day. Status checking was generally unreliable, shown as "processing" up until they showed up via USPS.
Was this expedited service? Was the renewal submitted online or mailed in?
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Old Feb 10, 2023 | 8:06 am
  #2226  
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Not expedited, and as they are youth passports needed to be done in person as post office, so effectively mailed in from there.
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Old Feb 17, 2023 | 12:35 am
  #2227  
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online renewals program is now temporarily closed for new applications
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Old Feb 17, 2023 | 8:31 am
  #2228  
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I'm currently in my eighth week of processing for a routine app that went in between Christmas and New Years. The status is still marked as "received".

I don't need the passport until June, but I am a little surprised that the online route is on the longer end of the original 6-9 week quoted processing time. I would have thought these could be processed a lot faster than paper applications.
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Old Feb 18, 2023 | 1:01 pm
  #2229  
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I googled usa passport renewal status and after inputting some info I learned that my passport is approved and will be sent next week. Big yay.
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Old Feb 20, 2023 | 2:31 pm
  #2230  
 
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Still waiting on mine that was expedited, express shipping, large book, and submitted online on 1/9/23. Said 3-5 weeks to process and has been over that time now. Currently it says 5-7 weeks to process for expedited submissions. Still waiting and calling daily to see if I can get an in person appointment
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Old Feb 20, 2023 | 4:16 pm
  #2231  
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Expedited service - 17 year old (second passport, but "first" passport since turning 16.

Submitted at USPS on 1/27/23. As of 2/6/23, website states that passport application was pending receipt and processing time would take "5 to 7 weeks" from when received at the passport center.

Today (2/20/23), website states application is approved, service can take "5 to 7 weeks" and that I should receive the passport on 2/22/23. Go figure.
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Old Feb 21, 2023 | 7:03 pm
  #2232  
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Originally Posted by worldiswide
Any more recent experiences with timelines for expedited renewal. Civilian application - the process was fairly easy and worked well. Submitted application on Feb 5 and status is still received. Am buying an international ticket tomorrow and will use the expired number (on my travel profile) and then update when the new passport comes? Is that the right process.
At least a few months ago my application status didn't change even AFTER I had received my passport back - don't know if their system has improved. I changed/updated my passport number and trusted traveler once I had new passport in hand.
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Old Feb 22, 2023 | 12:53 am
  #2233  
 
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Routine service
Mailed out application on 12/20/222. Received passport on 02/10/2023
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Old Feb 23, 2023 | 7:44 pm
  #2234  
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Originally Posted by kiwinuked
Still waiting on mine that was expedited, express shipping, large book, and submitted online on 1/9/23. Said 3-5 weeks to process and has been over that time now. Currently it says 5-7 weeks to process for expedited submissions. Still waiting and calling daily to see if I can get an in person appointment
Damn. I also submitted online, expedited with fast shipping, large book on 1/29. I have travel on March 17. Based on your experience, I am not going to receive it in time. Is it possible to get an in-person at a passport center after I have already submitted an online application?
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Old Feb 24, 2023 | 8:42 am
  #2235  
 
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Originally Posted by anandrg
Damn. I also submitted online, expedited with fast shipping, large book on 1/29. I have travel on March 17. Based on your experience, I am not going to receive it in time. Is it possible to get an in-person at a passport center after I have already submitted an online application?
Too late for me, but the wiki looks good for what to do for an in person appointment. They told me recently that they changed the rule to a flight before 5 business days for in person processing but not sure if that is really true. (just heard the new rules on Wednesday Feb 22) You could always try to get an appointment as soon as you can with a flight (book an award flight or cancel a flight after booking witching 24 hours) that fits the criteria once you are able to get the appointment. But the online people have to go through two sets of operators to get an appointment while the people who are mailing the passport in only have to go through one. Seems like a big mess
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