My friend's renewal was rejected for photo -- they only used 3 staples and it looks like the photo bent in the scanner.

The State Dept sent back the whole application along with the uncashed check. So, pretty sure it happens before they cash the check.

Friend was able to staple a new photo to the app and send it in again.

If you're doing a new application in person at an acceptance facility, they definitely look at the photo before accepting it -- but it's possible they would think it's ok and the State Dept would reject it once they received the app.

But at any rate I'm pretty sure it happens fairly early on in the process, and yes you have to start again.

Approved: 02/25/2022
Expected to Receive by: 03/05/2022

sorry just checked. NOT Next Gen.

sorry just checked. Renewal is NOT Next Gen. I’ll update when my daughter picks up her package to check hers (New App)

There were no appointments 14 days out for Southern California for same-day service. The closest center available was in Texas. I followed the advice from chgoeditor on how to get a reservation for a same-day passport by calling a few minutes ahead of the phone center opening. I updated the wiki with this information.

I'd expect a significant delay if your photo is found to not be suitable. We submitted an expedited application in late November that showed a "The U.S. Department of State has received your application..." status with a date in mid December. At some point in late January (over a month later) we received a notification that the picture that was submitted along with the application (taken by the application acceptance office n:rolleyes: less) was not suitable. After a few weeks trying to get new pictures taken (college students have their own timelines) we sent off the new pictures about 10 days ago. The application status has so far not changed and nothing has been received by us as of yet.

Hi,
I sent the renewal via USPS priority mail for mother-in-law. It should have been delivered about five days ago, but USPS' tracking system shows that it arrived in Philadelphia and is in transit to the destination.

Should I be worried?

I sent mine via USPS priority to Philadelphia and, two months later, it is STILL in transit, but I have my new passport in hand. Check the status on the Passport System, which is how I watched the process evolve.

USPS is famous for missing delivery scans (delivered but not scanned as such) and vice versa (delivering it as scanned but it's still on the truck).

I'd check the state dept's status page and/or see if the check has been cashed to see if they received your application.

If neither a delivery scan nor state dept update for 10 days, then I'd become worried.

Covering at least four US Administrations, it's within the range of normal for the State Department passport application status to not be representative of the actual status of the passport application. I wouldn't worry about it.

That the USPS tracking system is off with passport applications after arriving in PHL is also unfortunately not a surprise and also is most often indicative of no real delay in the passport application resulting in the passport getting back to the applicant.

If the check has cleared with the funds out of the current account, then I wouldn't even give this a second thought and just assume the passport would be back in the same range as other applicants whose online status updates were more timely/accurate.

Please excuse if a dumb question...Can you explain about the locator no.? Is this something I can request for possibly faster service? Are certain locations/locator no. faster/better? TIA.

looking for any help/suggestions etc.. I have been calling relentlessly but not at 7:45 AM (and waiting till 8 to hit 1, will do that tomorrow morning)
applied, expedited, in 1st week of November, 2021...nothing yet...they refuse to give any info...local congress woman also submitted a request on our behalf..last week..but nothing yet...

I did make a reservation at a Hilton in Toronto (for next week) and have been telling them I will be driving...how exactly will they check the reservation..do they have a way? they keep asking for the confirmation number..and I give them...but am not sure what they do with the confirmation number

is it better if I actually have a flight confirmation number? I can do that....I just thought they have no way to tell..but once they give an appointment..I can then make a real reservation and take it with me...

1) will it help if I have a real airline reservation? instead of a hotel in canada!!
2) will it help/can I simply just apply for a new passport..marking the old one "lost"...the presumption here is state lost the application/passport...(why would it take more than 3 months...)

Data point

Applied for Renewal using Routine service
• Mailed: 2/10/22 via USPS
• Delivered: 2/12/22
• Shipped: 3/7/22
• Received: 3/9/22

Mailed to which center? Did you receive a NexGen (new type) passport?

Mailed to Irving (Dallas). No I did not get a NexGen passport.

Mine says it's approved as of yesterday (3/12); last time I remembered to check and it still said in progress was Wednesday (3/9). Application was delivered on 2/17, and locator was 34 (Charleston).

From eyeballing this thread, it seems like something may have changed with the email system mid-late summer? Looks like no one has reported receiving any emails since July or so.

Interesting, I hadn't noticed that, but I signed up for email updates and received none. (My new passport arrived last week.)

Hey beepyou ... if you happen to remember, where did your returned original documents come back from? (May not be the same as where the passport was printed.) Just curious since 17 is an office that doesn't appear on any of the known lists so far.

Adding a data point on appt availability as there aren't a lot of recent ones in this thread:
Called yesterday morning Mon 3/21 at 8am on the dot, looking for an Atlanta agency appointment for travel Sat 4/2. (I believe this was the earliest possible for this departure as they're not open weekends... didn't try Friday which would have been 15 days out.) The only options at that agency were 8:30am and 9am 4/1 (which worked for us, so we didn't ask about other agencies).

Applicant already has an expedited DS-11 that's reached the In Process stage. If that gets approved this week we may be able to cancel the appointment.

Folks on Reddit report that it need not be either/or: you can start the process expedited by mail/acceptance facility, and if later going to the agency in person, they can transfer/finish the existing application using the locator number, and charge a lesser fee (possibly $35 for in-person execution, but fees already paid would be applicable). Will report back with a data point if we end up needing to do this. When initially starting this process ~4 weeks before the trip, it seemed like a gamble to choose which route (too close for the official expedited turnaround, though sometimes faster in practice, and too far out to know if any in-person appointments would be available). Hope this info may be helpful for others in the 2-5 week "uncanny valley" period.

Also, a couple of suggestions for Atlanta local acceptance options:

• There is a USPS Mega Passport Center at 1920 NE Dresden Dr, Brookhaven (North Atlanta PO, near Buford Dr) that accepts walk-ins, replacing the now-closed Midtown office. Inexplicably, this is not shown anywhere online and the USPS directory doesn't state that this location does passports at all. This was a 3-4 hour wait the day we tried with only a few windows open. One plus is the hours are Mon-Sat 9a-6p (very few other Saturday options including other POs).
• The DeKalb Superior Court Clerk takes walk-in applications (only) -- great service and had no wait the day we went. It's a bit hard to find, on level G of the further back tower after clearing security.
• GSU Clarkston takes adult walk-ins as well as appointments (no personal experience here).

Anyone know where locator #11XXXXXXX is coming from? I don't see it on any list?

DP for Minor Passport Renewal (same as new application), regular service and mail

Appointment: 2/28
Check cashed: 3/9
Locator #57 (San Fransisco)
Approved: 3/29
Passport received: 3/31

Child renewal-routine
 

Arrived at passport center: 3/30/2022
Check cashed: 3/30/2022

I'll update as more info comes in.

Sent to Philly or Irvin? Thanks

DS11 minor with first time passport
Submitted with routine processing fee but website said "you requested expedited service", so not sure which process it went through.

3/13: Appointment in person at acceptance facility
3/19: In Process (locator code 69)
4/01 (Fri): "Shipped" via Priority Mail w/ tracking number
4/04 (Mon): Accepted by USPS in Arkansas
4/07: Expected delivery

10 days to process, 25 days door to door.

Applied for Renewal using routine service

• Mailed: 3/18/2022 to Irving Texas
• Delivered: 3/21/2022
• In Process: Status showed application was active starting 3/28/2022
• Check Cleared: 3/29/2022
• Approved/Shipped: 4/6/2022
• Received: 4/9/2022

I registered for email notifications but I never received any updates. I was surprised by the USPS Priority Mail envelope in my box this morning.

Did you receive a NexGen (new type) passport?

I'm not sure what a NexGen passport looks like. It seems to be just like my old passport (with the RFID biometrics).

I don't think I got a new format of the book. I didn't see any of the new features/artifacts on the picture page. So it will be another 10 years for me.

Thanks for posting this helpful information. Quick turnaround!

What were the first two digits of your application locator number? These numbers indicate in which passport office your application was examined and approved (where your scanned application was sent after being received in the big PO Box in Irving).

From where was your new passport mailed to you?

I don't have the locator number. I always used the online status query. My new book was mailed from Passport Service Dos Tuscon. At least that is what the USPS Informed Delivery says.

OK. That means your passport was printed in Tucson (one of the two big US passport printing plants -- the other is in Hot Springs, Arkansas). But some US passports are printed elsewhere. If you have a record of any of the online status queries you made, the query returns your locator number. Look for it in the status message. The first two digits tell you in which office your application was examined and approved. Since yours was a renewal application, I believe your old passport will be mailed back to you from that office.

Never made a copy of any of the status queries. Actually I am amazed at the turnaround time. We are travelling in August and I had read so many horror stories about the time required for a renewal that my wife and I applied earlier than we normally would.

On a side note, I wish passports worked like GE Pass IDs. Where you are assigned a permanent number and you can apply for renewal at any tim up to a year before expirations and your new book is good for 10 years after the old book's expiration date.

Renewing US passport
 

Hello everyone,
I have to renew my passport. Here's what the timeline is looking like for my renewal so far (note: my request is expedited):

4/8: Mailed off passport at a local USPS here in the NW suburbs of Chicago via USPS priority mail (~$9)
4/11: Passport app arrived in Philly
Today (4/13): My check was cashed and my app is trackable in the system, locator #69.

I'll update the thread as more milestones happen.

I'm also running a contest between German and US passport authorities as I had to renew my German passport last summer. It took my German passport around 29 days to be renewed. We'll see who wins (my prediction is that Germany will, but we will see).

Best,
Erica

Applied for Renewal using Routine service
• Mailed: 3/12/22 via USPS
• Delivered: 3/15/22

• Check cashed and processing as of 3/24/22
​​​
• Status changed to Approved as of 4/14/22 (delivery estimated by 4/16)

Will Update the rest as it comes

DS82 adult with recently expired passport
Submitted for routine service + routine mailing

3/7: Mailed via Priority Mail
3/9: Delivered to Irving, Texas
3/17: In Process (locator code 69)
4/11: Approved, "expected 4/18" (no tracking number given)
4/15: arrived in mailbox

25 days in processing, 39 days door to door

(edited to reflect actual arrival date)

Thanks for the update. Did you mail your application to Philadelphia or Irving? What are the first two digits of your locator code? Those two digits indicate where your application was processed and approved (see the key at the top of this page). When you receive your passport, we passport geeks would love to know whether it is a Next Gen (new style) passport or the current (since ~2007) style (aka E-passport), and from where it was mailed (and printed -- typically Tucson AZ or Hot Springs AR).

Thanks for the timely update.
NextGen passport?
Large book (50-52 pages) or regular (26-28 pages)?
Mailed to you from where?