Just over a year ago, the federal government was advising travelers planning international trips to renew their passports at least six months in advance. Now, it may take only weeks to get a new passport – and you can even renew your expiring one online, too.
On Thursday, the U.S. State Department announced it now takes just four to six weeks for routine passport processing – regardless of whether you're applying for your first passport or renewing online. That's down from the previous, pre-pandemic norm of six to eight weeks … and the fastest passport processing times we've ever seen.
It's still just two to three weeks turnaround for expedited service, which costs an additional $60. Those timelines don't include shipping, which can add another week or two.
That's a far cry from the three-plus months it could take to get a passport last summer, when a short-staffed State Department was experiencing record demand. Passport processing times eventually sank back down to six to eight weeks late last year – the same as they had been before the pandemic. Now, they're even better.
The federal government blamed last year's lengthy delays on lingering backlogs of passport applications due to the pandemic and insufficient staff and resources. In a statement, the State Department said the improved passport wait times “showcases our progress to continuously improve the efficiency, equity, and accessibility of the U.S. passport application process.”
This news comes after the State Department formally launched last month the ability to renew their passports online – something that had been in the works for years. In Thursday's announcement, federal officials said online renewals should be processed in that same new four- to six-week window as mailed applications.
But in our experience, it's been much faster. Case in point: Our editor Kyle received his new passport just 13 days after applying online.
Interested and eligible travelers can apply to renew online on the State Department's dedicated page. To be eligible, your current passport must be within a year of expiring but issued no more than 15 years ago. Just keep in mind: Once you submit an application online, your current passport will be invalid until you get your new one back.
Read next: How to Get a Last-Minute Passport
