Americans can now receive passports 2 weeks earlier
The State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs has introduced that processing occasions for passports have been sped up by two weeks.
Previously, the Department dedicated to a processing time of six to eight weeks, now right down to a four-to-six-week interval.
A Department spokesperson advised Fox News Digital that the lowered passport processing occasions turned efficient on Oct. 3.
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“In September 2024, we fully launched our Online Passport Renewal system, allowing millions of Americans to now renew their passports online from the comfort of their homes,” the spokesperson wrote in an emailed assertion. “We project nearly half of all passport renewal applications in 2025 will be online.”
“By moving away from the traditional paper application process, we are embracing digital transformation to offer a more efficient and convenient passport renewal experience for Americans.”
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The change “showcases our progress to continuously improve the efficiency, equity, and accessibility of the U.S. passport application process,” mentioned the Department in a press launch.
“For Americans in need of expedited service for U.S. passports, our processing remains 2‑3 weeks. These processing times begin when an application is received by the State Department and do not include mailing times,” mentioned the discharge.
About 48% of Americans maintain a U.S. passport with 160 million legitimate U.S. passports in circulation, based on the State Department.
In September, Secretary Blinken made the announcement that passport holders would be capable of submit an internet kind to resume their passports, not requiring a mail-in software.
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The course of was rolled out to hurry up passport processing and is offered for residents searching for to resume their journey paperwork as much as one yr earlier than expiration, or inside 5 years after expiration.
“We transformed Passport Services from top to bottom. From engaging change management and customer experience strategists to hiring hundreds of passport adjudicators (the most ever) and focusing on modernization, we made it more efficient and more convenient for all Americans to receive passport services,” the Department spokesperson advised Fox News Digital.
In 2022, 80.7 million Americans traveled internationally with 18.7 million individuals touring within the second quarter of 2023, based on the International Trade Administration.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department for remark.