Travel is a great thing, but there are plenty of things that can take an anticipated trip and turn it into an absolute nightmare. While many of these things are beyond our control, something like an expired passport can be avoided. If the expiration date on the passport is before the trip that is scheduled in a few weeks, expedited United States passport renewal is there to help save the day.

Picture this scenario: the dream trip is all set up, the tickets have been purchased, the hotels have been booked, and vacation times have been scheduled at work. Everything is planned perfectly, right down to the last detail, until you read the fine print on your passport. Unfortunately, it is set to expire in a few weeks and the trip is right around the corner. Although the obvious first move in this situation is to panic, panic is not necessary.

This is an example of something that happens to people almost every day. Either they didn’t realize that they needed a passport or they haven’t used one in so long that they didn’t realize that it had expired. Passports are only good for ten years, so if the old blue book has some dust on it, it may be time to check the expiration date.

The beauty of passport renewal is that there is no need to have to wait in line. The whole process can be handled through the mail with little to no worries. The DS-82 form can be picked up at most post offices or downloaded right off the Internet. It will have to be filled out and then put in an envelope with the old passport and a new one will be on its way in about two months (sooner if the expedited service is paid for).

Since the contents of this package are obviously very sensitive in nature, it is important to make sure that the packing is secure. The State Department has on their website that it is best to use Tyvek packaging. The applicant can take it one step further and ship it via overnight mail and pay for the proof of delivery. It will add a little reassurance that the old passport and documents were received safely.

When standard processing is chosen, the delivery time for the renewed passport is about 6 weeks. If this is not quick enough, expedited service can be ordered for an additional $60. It may sound like a lot, but the alternative is to risk not making the trip at all. That can cost thousands in unreturned payments if the trip was prepaid and insurance was not purchased.

The current turnaround time for an expedited passport is about three weeks. This can fluctuate with travel schedules. If a popular overseas travel time is coming up, it is very likely that more people are using this service and the passport may not come back in the three week span. However, there are other services that can be utilized to get it back even quicker.

There are so many things that can go wrong on a trip; it is a shame to add one more, like having an expired American passport, that is our own fault. The glory of this mistake is that it is still very fixable, even up to the very last moment. Using expedited USA passport renewal can literally turn that frown upside down and allow everyone to enjoy their trip as planned.

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