Expand / Collapse search
☰

Passport delays could mean canceled vacations

By
Published  May 2, 2022 11:03am EDT
I-Team
FOX 5 Atlanta

Get your passport updated now to avoid delays

Travel has picked back up and if you or anyone in your family have a trip outside of the U.S. planned, you need to get that passport updated ASAP. FOX 5 I-Team's Dana Fowle says trips are being canceled over a backlog at the State Department.

ATLANTA - Travel has picked back up. Families are ready to go on vacation, but the processing of passports is still delayed. 

If you are planning an out-of-country trip, either overseas, to Mexico, Canada, or the Caribbean, then dig out your passport and check on the expiration date today. 

The U.S. State Department has updated its travel information to say that if you have any out-of-country travel plans scheduled in all of 2022, get the passport updated now. The processing time is faster than it was last year, but nowhere near it was before the pandemic.

The wait time could be four months. It's taking between eight and eleven weeks to process the application. Now add in the issues with mail delivery and other hiccups. Additionally, some countries require your passport be valid for six months before you travel.

If you have an emergency a need to travel abroad quickly, passport applications can be expedited, but it will cost time, money, and patience.