Get Your Passport Expedited Immediately

Since the enactment of additional regulations following the attack on the Twin Towers, U. S. Citizens need a passport to travel outside of the continental United States. Previously, a visit to Canada or Mexico only required a birth certificate and a driver's license or other photo identification. The preferred method of getting your passport is to allow four to six months and use standard methods for submitting and obtaining the documents.

2-3 Week Turnaround

If you will not be leaving on your journey for 3-4 weeks, you can expedite the passport process yourself. When you apply for a new passport through a passport application office, you request expedited service for your application. You will pay extra to for special handling. If you need the passport in your hands in two to three weeks, this procedure will allow you to obtain the passport in plenty of time.

Fewer than Ten Business Days

If you are unable to apply for your US passport until two weeks or less before you will be traveling, you can use either of two methods to be sure the passport is in your hands in time for your scheduled departure. The first method is to personally take your documentation to the regional passport agency and walk it through the approval process. An appointment must be scheduled, but you will have your passport the same day if you follow this plan. If you live close enough to the regional office, this might be the best solution; even there will be extra costs.

In the event that personal travel to the regional office is not possible for you, you can arrange for a private visa and passport application agency to get your passport document in time. Private expediters are paid to help you with the process. They may walk your papers through the application procedure in order to meet your deadline.

Private Passport Service Agency

If you need your passport the same day, the private expediters can do it. If you need the passport at any time during the next eight to ten business days, the private agency can arrange to get it cone. The cost for such service is generally dependent upon the exact time of the needed delivery date.

Expediters offer services with varied processing times. Choose the level of service based on how soon you need the passport in hand. When you use a private company, depending upon the desired delivery date, the passport specialist may arrange to pick up your documents and hand deliver them to the US Passport Agency. Fees for obtaining a passport through a private agency are significantly higher, but if the alternative is canceling your travel plans, the extra costs may be worth the price.

Paying for an expedited pass port is a stress reliever, since you won't need to stop your other activities to deal with the passport application. Paying the private company to take this burden off your shoulders is a savings in time and may be about the same money as if you had done the traveling yourself. The American passport document that you receive is good for a full ten years.