"Customers are advised to check the scheduler daily (either online or at a USPS kiosk)." "The online schedule searches available appointments through the end of the current month to the end of the following month, which can be more than four weeks into the future depending on the date of inquiry," the USPS LA office told me. In Los Angeles, appointments were not available until June 14 and in New York City, the soonest available appointment was June 10. "Customers are advised to check the scheduling tool regularly to obtain the next available appointment time."Įlsewhere in the country, you'll find similar wait times for appointments. "Regarding our passport scheduling tool, because of the surge in demand for travel and passports, we are seeing a large volume of requests for passport appointments," a USPS spokesperson said in a statement. When asked for more details about the lack of appointments across the Lone Star state, both the Houston and Dallas USPS offices pointed to an increase in travel among Americans. Waco, which sits between Dallas and Austin, had availability as soon as June 1, but in the Houston suburbs of Spring, Pinehurst and Tomball, there were no appointments available until mid-June. I wondered if the situation might be better outside of the main metro areas, so I looked to the smaller cities and suburbs. Of the four major cities in Texas, San Antonio was the only one with appointments in early June. Read more: Don’t necessarily expect shorter waits in applying for Global Entry and other ‘trusted traveler’ programs The first available appointment at five of the six USPS locations in Austin is June 14 the same is true for all Houston-area locations.
The situation is slightly better throughout other major cities but still not great. If you are applying for your first passport, are under 16 years old, received your previous passport when you were under 16 or your passport is more than 15 years old, you must complete the application process in person at a state acceptance facility. Whether you have kids under age 16 or you're simply getting your very first passport, you may not be able to initiate the process for at least a month, which could spoil future travel plans if you don't get ahead of the situation.įor more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. Much like a ticket to an Olivia Rodrigo concert, the appointments are sold out before they are made available."īecause children under age 16 must apply for each passport in person with both parents or guardians present, the lack of available appointments is especially problematic from a scheduling perspective. "The other difficulty is you can only book appointments four weeks out. Phantom appointments show up, but when you try to book them, they don't exist," said TPG reader Lori Strong, whose 13-year-old daughter's passport expires in August. "I have spent hours looking for appointments in Austin, Houston, and towns in between. This furthers the hassle and extends the amount of time it takes for people to get new passports. While it's already inconvenient to physically go to the application center, the larger issue at hand right now is the lack of upcoming appointment availability at certain passport acceptance facilities.
USPS PASSPORT ACCEPTANCE FULL
Passports for children only last five years and it isn't until a child turns 16 that they can apply for a full passport valid for 10 years. However, certain people, including first-time applicants and kids have to complete the application process in person. The State Department currently estimates the passport delivery time to be between eight and 11 weeks for routine service. passports by mail, which requires some paperwork as well as some time waiting around for processing and delivery.
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