Expect lengthy passport delays

Overwhelmed by unprecedented demand, the State Department is warning would-be travelers to brace for lengthy delays in getting U.S. passports, even when they pay a hefty fee to speed their applications.

The department has hired hundreds of employees to process passport requests over the past two years as tougher immigration rules have taken effect.

Even so, the department says a crush of new applicants – more than 1 million a month – has inundated its staff and caused delays of up to a month-and-a-half at the peak January-to-April season when many people are preparing to travel over the spring and summer.

In addition, a regulation that took effect this year requiring Americans to have passports when traveling by air to any country – including Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean – “has increased passport demand and production to record levels.”

As a result, routine passport processing could take 10 weeks instead of the previous six, and expedited processing could take four weeks instead of two weeks.

People seeking information about the status of their applications can check online at http://travel.state.gov, or call (877) 487-2778 during weekdays.

For adults getting their first passport, the routine processing fee is $97 with an additional $60 charge for expedited service. Passport renewals for adults cost $67, with the same expedited fee.