Travelers Beware: Or Be Caught in a Bureaucratic Nightmare

Brian Tamanaha

If you plan to travel abroad any time in the next six months, read this post.



On April 4th, my wife and I went to the post office with all the documents required to renew our seven-year-old son’s passport. After waiting only an hour and a half in line, the courteous clerk efficiently handled the paperwork and assured us that we would receive the passport by mail within eight weeks.



That was almost three months ago. My wife is taking the kids to visit her family abroad. The departure date is this Sunday, July 1. We have paid for non-refundable tickets in the amount of $2,400. Everyone is excited, especially her parents, who see their grandchildren only once a year.



The only problem is that the passport has not arrived.



About two weeks ago we became a bit concerned, and began calling the toll free number for the passport agency. Many times when you call the message will tell you that they are too busy to receive your call, and it hangs up. We went on the passport internet site and registered our request, receiving an assurance that we would get an update within days (still waiting for that).



Finally, after calling many times (and after being on hold for many minutes), last Tuesday we reached a live person. What a relief! She cheerily told us that she would indicate on our file that the passport must be expedited, and she assured us we would receive the passport by express mail within three days. Great! That wasn’t so bad after all.



It didn’t come.



Last Friday night, now truly concerned, we reached another live person. She told us that there was no indication in the file that anything had been done on the passport, and she said that we should call again on Monday. I asked her if we could go into the passport office (in Manhattan) to get the passport in person. She said that they would only see us within three days of the scheduled departure date, so we had to wait until then to try that approach.



Monday arrived and, you guessed it, no passport. We reached a live person again (after many calls and much waiting). The apologetic fellow told us that nothing had been done on the passport. After almost three months and several calls and assurances, it sits without movement in Stage One (“received but not processed at all”). My guess is that it takes about five minutes at most to verify and input the information necessary to renew a passport, so they must be busy.



It is possible to get a passport in person if you are near an office. But you are allowed entry into the passport office only if you have an appointment. Unfortunately, as we learned today, the soonest available appointment is several days after the scheduled departure date. Had the first person we talked to advised us to try and get an appointment immediately, we might have had a chance. Now it is too late. Despite being told that we must wait until three days before departure, as it turns out there is no special allowance for people within three days of departure. Trip in a couple of days, applied three months ago, but no appointment, so too bad.



I asked the nice fellow on the line whether it would help if we showed up at the office with kids in tow and plane tickets in hand, our desperation showing on our faces; he said that they “almost certainly” would not let us in. We have decided to try anyway. He sounded sympathetic, but assured me that there was nothing he could do. When I asked him to be honest about our prospects, he said it “looks rough” (meaning: virtually no chance in hell you will get a passport before your scheduled departure).



There was little point in being angry, so I thanked him for his candor, and that was it.



It’s depressing to have done everything right in ample time, and yet be in this position. Fortunately, I am comforted by knowing that my country loves me, and is doing everything it can for me.



Meanwhile, we have to tell the grandparents that they won’t see their grandchildren next week (and probably not this summer) because it takes more than three months to get a passport renewed in the U.S. I prefer not to think about the money we have lost on the tickets through no fault of our own. Just imagine how bad things must be for people who live in a place less efficient than our own great country.



Anyone out there who is scheduled to travel and needs a new passport, take my word for it: Don’t believe what you are told. It is a mess, and they offer misleading information and conflicting advice.



Submit your application at least six months in advance (and even then cross your fingers), or get an appointment and do it in person. Save yourself a lot of anxiety, expense, and disappointment.



You have been warned.





[Update. Thanks, everyone, for the helpful suggestions and e-mails. Following several suggestions, I contacted my Congressman's Office (never did that before). They were quite familiar with the problem, and set up to deal with it. No promises, and it's tight, but at least I have a shot.



Seth Kaplan sent me this link and this link about the slew of passport problems. What a massive embroglio this is.



Thanks for the help.]