How to get a rush passport
if yours is no longer valid
 

How to get a rush passport

The adage—that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line—holds true for geometry. But not for international travel, and especially not these days. International travel has surged back to levels last seen before the COVID pandemic. On top of that, we’ve all become our own logistics experts: booking our own flights, selecting our own hotels, and figuring out how to get ground transportation thousands of miles away in a language we don’t speak. Throw in family members traveling with you and the challenges grow exponentially.

By the way: Did you check to make sure your US Passport is still valid?

If that question or the answer to it made your stomach drop, you’re not alone. With the interruption in international travel these last two years, millions of US Passports have expired and too many people are making plans to finally get away, only to find that they might still be grounded and staying home.

Here are some quick answers to questions about whether your US Passport is valid for travel, and what to do if it’s not. If you’re pressed for time, getting a rush passport might be the best solution.

What makes a passport invalid

There’s no worse time to realize your passport is invalid than right before an international trip. Whatever the reason for your international travel—whether it be for business or pleasure—planning for it is a time-intensive process. Discovering your passport is invalid can add complications to this process or even derail your plans altogether.

Minimize the risk that you will have to cancel your plans by reading through these common reasons that passports could be deemed invalid:

• The expiration date has passed or will pass within six months of the time of your trip. You may not know it, but many destinations require your US Passport to be valid six months after your expected return date. Many airlines won’t let you board your plane without a US Passport valid at least six months beyond your date of return
• You're age 18 or older and your current passport was issued when you were under age 16.
• Your passport has been lost, stolen, or damaged.
• You've changed your name since your original passport was issued.
• You've run out of blank pages to accommodate entry and exit immigration stamps for each country you are traveling to.

There are several other reasons your passport may not be valid for international travel. You can find a comprehensive list on the US State Department’s website.

Rush passport renewal

Unfortunately, due to processing backlogs and high demand, US passport renewal/application times can be 12 weeks or longer. This can put a serious crimp in your travel plans if you don’t have two or three months to wait.

The good news is that rushing a passport renewal or new passport altogether is possible in weeks or even days. While the US Passport Office will only accommodate very specific requests related to rushing passport renewals, our team of experts at CIBTvisas can rush your passport in as little as one day. CIBTvisas submits the required US Passport documentation on your behalf. This eliminates the need for you to visit, communicate, or correspond directly with the United States Department of State.

How VisaCentral can rush your new passport

Our team of expert passport and visa professionals submit all of the required documentation on your behalf greatly minimizing the length of time needed to process your passport. So, if you are in a pinch and need to rush your new passport or passport renewal, VisaCentral can help you through the process. Unlike the traditional process that doesn’t easily accommodate rushing passport renewals, by using VisaCentral, you can expect your passport to be processed in as little as one to five days.

As the leading global travel visa service, we are here to help you navigate every complication surrounding passport renewal—especially when you only have weeks or days to get it turned around. When you need to be traveling abroad and you need to have your passport renewal rushed, VisaCentral is the partner you can trust for fast, convenient, and secure services.

Learn more about our passport renewal services by visiting our dedicated passport information page or by calling us today!