@maique Very sorry you couldn't keep those amazing stamps. The US gives them back with a giant hole stamped into the old one.
@gregmoore We don’t get that, but I keep asking. The only way to do it is by lying. Going to the police and reporting it as lost/stolen, get the report and take it to the passport office.
We always say we will but, when the time comes, it’s always a last minute thing, and no time for that 😔
@maique bummer you can’t keep the old one. In the US, we get our expired ones back, but “expedited” is six weeks. Regular time is longer.
@lukemperez That’s crazy!! Six weeks! I find a week (five working days) long enough. Usually I’ll just be my lazy self, and go to the airport desk, the one that gets you same day delivery, and pay the extra fee. It’s something like €35 on top of the regular fee, and be done with it.
@maique Sigh! I have renew my Indian one this month; perhaps for the last time before I apply for the U.S. one in less than four years. Your process is much simpler than mine and definitely will take longer as everything has to go through mail. But we do get our old passport back. I should post the front pages of my previous ones 😆
BTW our son got his first passport when he was two months old. Now imagine what an ordeal it was to take his photo.
@pratik Here the thing is pretty straightforward, as I said you can go in, take a photo, sign the form, and you can have it in a couple of hours. All the info is already there, from our ID card.
If you’re younger than two (I believe) you can take your own photo, and that one will be used, if all the requirements are met. She’s a little older, and acted like a pro. Like if her father was a photographer and she was used to the whole thing… 😂🤣😇
@maique I didn’t tell you the best part. $130 for a Passport. There’s an ID card for frequent travelers going across the Canadian or Mexican border for $30, but everyone else really needs the full price one. And it’s an extra $60 for expedited. Thankfully, we can go to other offices instead of only mailing to and from the State Department. I got mine renewed last spring at my city’s municipal offices.
@lukemperez Cool that you have one for those who only need to travel to the neighboring countries. Our ID card, the one we all have, is good for all the EU countries, so no passport needed if you’re just planning to travel in most of Europe.
And, all things considered, I don’t find the cost of your passport expensive. It’s basically double what our costs, but our salaries are probably under half of yours. Seems fair.
@maique on the price I hadn’t considered that. I suppose that’s about right. Though, I’d like to see a tiered pricing. Cheap for minors and first time passports, and then pegged to salary thereafter.
@maique I was reading your post earlier and forgot to comment. It’s a shame to lose precious memories… they should give you your document back, after all, you’ve paid for it sometime in the past. Here we get ours back but with the cover and pages cut at the edges…
