If you’ve been trying to renew your passport online, and have been running into delays, you’re not alone.
TravelGov has been receiving a number of tweets from frustrated applicants who claim they haven’t received their renewed passport yet and can’t get anyone to help.
“I often look at that online renewal system as possibly having some glitches or errors. And I don't think it details to people, consumers, all of the elements that are needed for the passport,” said Bill Coyle.
Bill Coyle says his clients at Encompass the World Travel Agency in Brunswick haven’t been experiencing this problem, but he points to several reasons that could be causing travelers to have issues, such as submitting unreadable information or having something in your background.
“I think that there's elements to this process that maybe people who aren't getting coached or don't have someone to help them with it are missing, and that's probably why they're sending it in and finding out that they didn't include something. Something might be illegible or unreadable,” Coyle said.
To avoid further delays, Coyle encourages people to make sure everything is listed and spelled correctly, to ask for help in the process from their local town center or librarian, and apply early.
He also reminds people you cannot renew an expired passport.
“Sometimes when we go online, we're just filling out things and we're maybe not understanding exactly what needs to be done. I'm not saying that all online applications are bad or being rejected, but I think that when we have someone helping us, it's probably a better way to go,” said Coyle.
According to the State Department, the current processing time for a new passport is eight to 11 weeks, or five to seven weeks for an expedited passport, which will cost an extra $60.
For more information, click here.
Watch live and local news any time:
Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.
You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.
