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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 Dec 19, 2025 | 9:50 am
  #2881  
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12/13/25 (Saturday) - Applied online
12/14/25 - Received In Process email
12/17/15 - Received Approved email
12/19/25 - Passport book arrived in Mail Sent US Priority Mail
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Old Dec 19, 2025 | 10:38 am
  #2882  
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Impressed with how easy this was.
12/11/25 - Applied
12/13/25 - Accepted
12/17/25 - Approved
12/19/25 - Received
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Old Dec 23, 2025 | 4:34 pm
  #2883  
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While packing for my international flight tomorrow, I cannot find my passport. I consider it lost. Anyone have experience on the fastest way to get it replaced?
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Old Dec 23, 2025 | 8:08 pm
  #2884  
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Originally Posted by italdesign
While packing for my international flight tomorrow, I cannot find my passport. I consider it lost. Anyone have experience on the fastest way to get it replaced?
The instructions for same day expedited service are in the wikipost.
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Old Dec 23, 2025 | 10:05 pm
  #2885  
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Told all passport agencies are closed for the rest of this week. Argh
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Old Dec 24, 2025 | 2:58 pm
  #2886  
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Originally Posted by italdesign
Told all passport agencies are closed for the rest of this week. Argh
POTUS made both Wed 12/24 and Fri 12/26 federal holidays.
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Old Dec 27, 2025 | 8:42 am
  #2887  
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Any recent data points?

I applied in person (not at a passport center) on December 12th with expedited service, today is December 27th and the tracking website says no application found.

The $35 facility check was cashed but not the application check itself.

Have planned travel in mid-Jan so getting close to the 14-day mark where I could pivot to passport center (I live near one).
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Old Dec 28, 2025 | 9:10 pm
  #2888  
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How recent? Applied in early September (regular service) and did online application. Had a passport in hand in less than 10 days.
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Old Jan 1, 2026 | 10:42 pm
  #2889  
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Originally Posted by threeoh
I applied in person (not at a passport center) on December 12th with expedited service, today is December 27th and the tracking website says no application found.
Update: got an email on Dec 30 saying the passport application had been received on Dec 29 and is now being processed.

So delay was likely on the part of application location or the postal service, not the Dept of State passport center that's processing the application.
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Old Jan 3, 2026 | 10:32 pm
  #2890  
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Final rundown on that, if it's helpful for anyone:

Dec 12: applied in person, expedited
Dec 30: received email saying received on Dec 29
Jan 03: received email saying approved
Jan 07: estimated arrival

27 days start to finish, with two federal holidays and what looks like a significant postal delay.
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Old Jan 4, 2026 | 11:13 am
  #2891  
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Originally Posted by threeoh
Final rundown on that, if it's helpful for anyone:

Dec 12: applied in person, expedited
Dec 30: received email saying received on Dec 29
Jan 03: received email saying approved
Jan 07: estimated arrival

27 days start to finish, with two federal holidays and what looks like a significant postal delay.
Thanks for the update and data points. I wonder if you ran into a bit of bad luck with the end of the year rush and/or federal holidays (that were increased this year).
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Old Jan 6, 2026 | 3:19 pm
  #2892  
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I can't remember if I posted this. I don't like the thought of being without my passport, so prefer to do it at a passport office. I made an appointment at the New Orleans passport office, which I had no trouble getting. Even though I showed up early, I was in and out in less than 20 minutes. And then they phoned me one hour later to tell me that my passport was ready.When I showed up to pick it up I realized that it was their lunch hour, but still they let me in and gave me my new passport.
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Old Feb 13, 2026 | 10:08 pm
  #2893  
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Renewed online 2/1/26
In Process 2/2/26
Approved 2/9/26
Received Passport Book 2/11/26
Passport Card - Still waiting

The email notifications were 2 days late. (I checked status on the website everyday.) I never received the tracking number. I found that out through USPS Informed Delivery.
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Last edited by naumank; Feb 14, 2026 at 9:59 am
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Old Feb 14, 2026 | 1:21 pm
  #2894  
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Family member renewed online (no special handling) three weeks ago. Passport received by ordinary mail 17 days later.

Getting their AI system to approve the picture we took involved something like ten submissions, though.
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Old Mar 2, 2026 | 11:00 pm
  #2895  
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Renewed via USPS
- 2/17/26 - Mailed application
- 2/20/26 - Received (In process)
- 2/26/26 - Shipped
- 2/27/26 - Approved
- 3/2/26 - Received Passport book via USPS

Checked passport status on website daily. They posted the tracking number on 2/26/26 when it stated "Shipped". It did further state that "Save or write down this tracking number now. Future status updates will not display your tracking number". The next day, the updated website was "Approved" and the tracking number was no longer listed.
The email notifications sent were when the application was received and when it was approved. No email notification for shipped.
Still quite impressed at how quick this was. I did not pay for expedited processing ($60).
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