Which embassies? Consulates?
 

Is there a list of which ones? I can plan our travels around doing this, if I knew which ones. Some places we are in for a month at a time.

Also considering a 2nd passport. That you have to go to a regional office? Then hand over your current one, while the 2nd is being produced? We spent 300 days traveling outside the US last year. And will do the same this year. I think certain jobs qualify ( pilots) and such for a 2nd one. Not sure I would qualify.

If wanting to do renewal by mail with a US embassy/consulate, check out the websites of the more convenient embassies/consulates that may have renewal by mail language on the site.

More and more embassies/consulates have gotten into trying to interrupt this game with language such as this:

But that’s forked tongue language quite often. With in-person appointments booked online and having an onward international flight ticket for travel 3-5 weeks out or sooner, that embassy too does it. I don’t know who they are trying to kid, but online they are still trying to say they advise to do renewal by mail, when possible, because of Covid-19 reasons.

Indeed they are also one of the US embassies/consulates in Europe playing a game to try to stamp down on a faster way to get US passport applications turned around than doing so within the US. And indeed in-person DS-82 applications can be done and appointments booked online for that location too. Hint: follow the children’s passport application links on the embassy/consulate sites when the embassy/consulate tries to bury the possibility for in-person DS-82s and get to booking passport service appointments that way.

Stan1162. You can only carry a second (or even a third passport) with permission of the DoS. 300 days of travel a year on its own does NOT mean anything. You must demonstrate that you have a reason, which has often included;

1) Frequent travel to Israel and any one of a number of Muslim countries....however......certain things over the last decade have made this more difficult, such as the fact that Israel stopped stamping most US passports on arrival, and the fact that fewer Muslim states will deny entry to someone with an Israeli stamp. The big exception being of course that Israel generally does still stamp for land crossings (as opposed to TLV).
2) Evidence that you are traveling to places that require your passport for extended period of times in order to issue a visa. Russia was a great one for this as even in good times, at times it could take weeks to get a Russian visa issued. If you evidenced that you had/have to travel somewhere else while this is being done, then they would issue it. China is another one, but is somewhat of a catch 22, at least before Covid as the more you traveled to China the greater the duration of visa would be, so if you have 10 year China visas, you have no excuse. Also certain central African and Central Asian countries.
3) Certain professions. The entire (US) White House press corps has 2-3 passports each, specifically because they often need journalist visas to many places that take longer to process (or in some cases because they have to go by the letter of the law, they need press visas where regular travelers need none). So they always have a passport or two in process somewhere for visas. Certain types of humanitarian and religious charity workers will have 2. The DoS has a list of many categories that they regularly allow this for.

GU, is it that they are trying to stamp out faster turnarounds, or simply that they are trying to encourage anyone from going to the mission for any reason. I tend to find that any specific ACS that makes it diffficult to make an appointment for a passport application in person also makes it difficult to do so for document verification/certification or pretty much anything else as well.

I think you meant to type “discourage” instead of “encourage”. And if so, then yes, as the government is on a general trend of wanting to discourage even American Citizen Services-related foot traffic into the consulates/embassies. For a long time, the idea of US passport renewal by mail outside of the US was considered to be a passport security risk and a security concern enough overall to not want to encourage US passport renewal by mail outside of the US. Clearly, the priorities/considerations of the government have changed on this. And part of the excuse of the day for the different posture is that biometric passports and more widespread near-real-time use of databases by government authorities (even at foreign ports of entry/exit) mean that US passport misuse concerns aren’t exactly what they used to be. [FWIW, I think there are going to be more US citizens who will over time learn the hard way that passport renewal by mail with return by mail is more than just a potential inconvenience or even security risk for them as an individual.]

What the government is wanting/trying to do may be one thing, while what it results in may be another. When it comes to wanting the fastest and most reliable passport turnarounds at the lowest cost for my friends and family, I care less about what DC is wanting to do with going in this direction than what the results are for these US passport applications submitted outside of the US.

Yes, I meant discourage............

In order to get my congressman or senator's office to help, do I need an imminent trip planned? Does it have to be within 14 days?

Varies by legislator’s office and passport issue, but only use one office to run the issue.

More than 14 days in advance? Then they may suggest paying up for expedited service first if not having done so already and waiting until within 14 days.

Quite disappointing how even domestic applications with expedited service for a fee are sometimes taking as long as 8-9 weeks while standard domestic processing could be up to 13 weeks.

I contacted my congressman's office about 15-16 days prior to travel and they asked for my proof of travel, so I sent them my e-ticket. Once they submitted it, the passport agency wrote back to them and said my renewal would be moved into the queue for congressional inquiries by date of travel. It seems to have worked. They (congressman's office) emailed me yesterday with a tracking number and I can see via USPS informed delivery that my passport is on its way to me. Whew!

Totally agree this is disappointing. I received an email titled "Passport Application Status" this morning. I was overjoyed. But it turns out that the email says that my kid's application has been "in process" since March 13. Really? Back then, the processing time was 5-7 weeks. It has already passed the 7-week mark. Very unfortunate. Our travel is in July but, at this speed, I don't know when we are going to get the passports.

That email this morning is probably a good sign; and even as the emails and status updates online are too often stale and unrepresentative of what is going on with the app, an update and the emails going out should be reassuring that it’s not lost in a bureaucratic blackhole and that it has been shifting around typically forward.

Good news update - I now have my new passport safely in my hands. It left Tucson at 4:15 am this morning and was delivered to my home in central Florida at 2:30 pm local time.

Good luck, naumank - Mine had been received and in process since 3/9/2023 and was being processed by locator #62 which I've read is one of the slowest. You still have time with a July departure date and hopefully will receive something soon. It is frustrating and stressful, however. Despite signing up for email update, I never received an email from the passport agency as the status changed throughout the process.

Congrats, SusanDK ! The delivery speed is amazing.

Mailed 3/23. Approved ~5/1. Waiting for mail. 69 locator.

Congrats! Unfortunately our applications got routed to 62 - a completely incompetent processing center.