A Passport is a government item given to people who want to travel to other countries. The documents are required in international travel and have to state the traveler’s country of origin and identity. Passports, though they date back long before the eighteenth century, were not internationally managed until late 1980. Today, passports from various countries vary greatly from others with only a basic standardization. To get them in the US, citizens need to apply at one of the numerous US passport agencies found around the country.
International travel cannot be possible unless you have a passport issued in your name. If you have an upcoming vacation to the Bahamas or a trip around Europe planned in the near future, make sure you give yourself plenty of time to apply for yours. Especially since, lately, obtaining these documents can often take up to three months or more.
The first act is to find a passport agency close to you. In most towns, the postal office is likely to serve this need. Phone yours ahead of time or look online to be sure this is the case. Look at the country’s agency site for local agencies near you. While you are there you could download and fill out the necessary DS-11 page that is required to get a passport. Taking it with you can speed the process up a little.
You will need two photographs of yourself that will go into the document. Often these can be taken at the same location as the rest of the process, although it sometimes can’t. You may need have your passport picture taken at a separate location for a small fee and bring it with you.
When you show up to apply for the government document, you’ll need to be sure and bring a number of things with you. Before you can be approved, you’ll have to first prove your U.S. Citizenship. Bring your original birth certificate, certificate of naturalization, or a previously obtained passport with you.
To prove your identity you will need to bring with you a current driver’s license or military id. As with the proof of citizenship, an old passport of yours will work well, too. You may also be asked to bring proof of your social security number with you as well.
Before you can be accepted, you will also be asked to pay fees when you show up to document’s application process. For all US citizens sixteen and over, it is fifty five dollars for the application fee and thirty dollars for the passport’s execution fee. For security, a lot of the states charge an extra couple of dollars as well.
Once all of the documents have been signed and fees completely paid at one of the US passport agencies, your US passport application will be sent off to the Department of Homeland Security for approval. Generally, it takes four to eight weeks for you to get approved and receive your document. Those who require their passport a bit quicker can pay an expedited service charge and receive theirs in as little as two to four weeks instead.
No related posts.
