How long does it take to get a US passport?

Question

I know getting a US passport takes a little while to get but with all the new law changes in the past year there were delays. Does anyone know about how long it takes to get one if I applied today?

Answer 1

It all depends.  I just received my 11 year olds passport last week and I applied for it 3 weeks ago.  I had sent a copy of our cruise agenda along with the application in hopes they would see the urgency.  I don't know if that helped to expidite her application but usually it can take up to 4 to 6 weeks.  Good luck.

Answer 2

it depends on a lot of things

Do you have an existing passport?

Do you have a name change?

How often have you moved?

Are you a citizen?

Will you pay for expedited service?

http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/pro...

Answer 3

Wow, only three weeks?  That seems very fast.

Last summer, the waiting periods were a lot longer than the Passport Agency was admitting to. Six months wasn't too long. You could pay extra for "expedited" processing, but even that was taking a long time.

Don't know where you'll be dropping off your application, but they might be a good source of info.  Either the post office or the Passport Agency who'll actually be doing the work. But you may get a sincere, "I dunno" for an honest answer.