
Passports for children under 16 are valid for five years. Passports for applicants 16 years of age and older are valid for 10 years.

United States citizens (both by birth and naturalization) as well as US nationals - those born in American Samoa, Swains Island, or the US Minor Outlying Islands - are eligible for an American passport. Whether you’re applying for the first time or need to renew the document, here’s what you need to get a US passport. The best time to start the application process for a passport or passport renewal is before you schedule a vacation. If you have an overseas trip on the books, this is one to-do list item on which you shouldn’t procrastinate. The “ unprecedented demand” for passports and subsequent delays has complicated upcoming summer travel plans for many, with some lawmakers hamstrung in their ability to help their constituents secure their documents. As recently as this February, processing times were six to nine weeks for routine applications and three to five weeks for expedited applications - so the situation can change quickly. Due to high demand, processing times for new US passports and renewals are 10 to 13 weeks for routine applications and seven to nine weeks for expedited applications. Required for traveling between countries, a passport is a formal document identifying the passenger and their country of citizenship. Per American Express’ 2023 Global Travel Trends Report, 85 percent of respondents reported their intentions to take two or more leisure trips this year.įor those eyeing an international escape, there’s one travel essential necessitating extra planning: your passport.

Over half of Americans are planning to travel for leisure during the first six months of 2023, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of the US Travel Association. After years of pandemic-curtailed travel, US vacationers are again packing their bags en masse.
