Passports: Proposed New Fees

[doctork]

The stated intent of the Passport fee is to offset the cost of processing and delivering the passport to the recipient. If you believe that the cost is too great, write your congressperson and suggest that the processing be offshored to a cheaper venue. China, India and Bangladesh come to mind.

 

Another alternative would be to allow US taxpayers to subsidize the cost of the relatively few citizens that use the passport services. It brings to mind the question "How much should taxpayers subsidize government services that only a few benefit from?".

 

I don't think anyone here has objected to paying a service fee for a passport. At least my concern is the large increase from the current rate of $75 to the proposed $135; that is nearly double. About 20% of Americans have passports, or about 60 million people, which does not seem to me to be a "few citizens."

 

In most other venues of my life, prices that double, or increasing the fees I can charge for my services, require justification. And in most arenas, higher volume results in lower unit costs. The recent change to require a passport to cross the US-Canada border, instead of a driver's license and voter registration card, has greatly increased the number of US citizens required to obtain a passport in order to shop or visit friends or family or go to school in Canada. But the prices are proposed to greatly increase, not be reduced.

 

This is probably more important and more noticeable to those of us who live close to the Canadian border and go back and forth frequently, or even daily in the case of those who live in Point Roberts or similar.

[jtl513]

At least my concern is the large increase from the current rate of $75 to the proposed $135; that is nearly double.

Currently a new passport carries a $75 application fee plus a $25 "execution fee", so a "Total cost" of $135 would be a 35% increase.

http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html

 

A renewal does not have the execution fee, so increasing that from $75 to $110 would be a 47% increase.

 

Bad, but not "nearly double".

[G&G]

Currently a new passport carries a $75 application fee plus a $25 "execution fee", so a "Total cost" of $135 would be a 35% increase.

http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html

 

A renewal does not have the execution fee, so increasing that from $75 to $110 would be a 47% increase.

 

Bad, but not "nearly double".

 

As a follow up to an earlier post, we just received our passports (renewed). It costs $75. If expedited another $60. Though the US Passport Agency said it would take 6 weeks to process, it actually only took 2-1/2 weeks to process. Why the high costs ?

 

Our original passports were mailed to Philadephia, PA to be renewed. When we received our renewed passport, the passport was express mailed from Portsmouth, NH. Our old pssport was returned in a separate envelope regular mail from Portsmouth, NH. What is going on ? Why not mail the originals to Portsmouth and send back both passports in same envelope !

[Cinema15]

When we read on a HAL thread that you needed a passport that would not expire for six months to cruise to certain countries we opted to renew our passports this month. The fees that we were charged was $75/passport to renew. This includes express mail service from US Passport Agency back to applicant.

 

An additional fee of $14.95/passport would be required if you wish to have the passport Fed Ex to you.

 

An additional fee of $60/passport would be required if you wish to have your passport renewal expedited. This means mailed, processed and returned in 2-3 weeks.

 

We did not do the expedited passport process. We were told it was taking up to 6 weeks to process our renewal. We just received our new passports; it took only 2 weeks and 4 days from the time we mailed the application to Philadelphia to receive our new passports.

 

 

 

$60 to expedite your passport is a complete waste of hard-earned cash. As one can see by this post the applying for passports has peaked and 99 percent of applicants are receiving their passports in a relatively timely fashion. Unless it's a dire need do not spend the extra money!

[TracieABD]

I intentionally send my passport in about 6 months early just to avoid the fees. This last round, it was back in 3-4 weeks. My son just renewed in the last six months... His was back in 2 weeks! Yes, they are getting faster!:)

[jtl513]

What is going on ? Why not mail the originals to Portsmouth and send back both passports in same envelope !

When we renewed last June we got three envelopes back, but I don't remember if the new ones came in separate envelopes or the old ones came back in separate envelopes. I think the new ones came back separately ... and we have non-consecutive numbers! (There's one number in between us.) Your government at work!! :rolleyes:

[doctork]

Currently a new passport carries a $75 application fee plus a $25 "execution fee", so a "Total cost" of $135 would be a 35% increase.

http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html

 

A renewal does not have the execution fee, so increasing that from $75 to $110 would be a 47% increase.

 

Bad, but not "nearly double".

 

So the "execution fee" has been eliminated? That is somewhat of a cost break if the proposed $135 fee increase already includes the execution fee. But currently it costs nothing to add pages; I had thought there was already a fee charged while one was within the US, and that for some reason that fee was not charged when you needed new passport pages while overseas.

 

I had arrived in Kabul to do volunteer aid work with several empty pages remaining in my book, but then the "emergency departure" planning required multi-entry Pakistani and Tajik visas too. Presto - I needed more pages, which US embassy personnel obligingly added to my book, quickly and at no addtional charge.

 

For more than a year after I left Afghanistan, I remained on the embassy alert list and received notices whenever there was a security threat that US citizens in the area should know about. If that is what the extra fees support, it's a worthwhile expenditure.

[GeriatricNurse]

Our passports in Canada currently cost $85. Supposedly, beginning in 2011, 10 year passports will be issued by our government!

Australia also has 10 passports.

 

I hadn't heard that so thanks for the info. The price is what it is so either pay it or you can't travel. I don't think the price is outragous. I'm sure many of us spend a lot more on other things and don't blink an eye.

 

 

It was announced in the (Canadian) federal budget in February 2008, that Canadian travellers will be issued a higher-security electronic passport starting in 2011 that will be valid for 10 years instead of the current five.:)

[jtl513]

So the "execution fee" has been eliminated? That is somewhat of a cost break if the proposed $135 fee increase already includes the execution fee.

This page http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_4734.html

doesn't mention any execution fee, and says

•Total Cost: $135 for a first-time U.S. Passport Book for adults (age 16 and over)

 

I presume that means $135 is the total cost.

[crusinbanjo]

Welcome to the world of BIG Government that can do anything it wants, or charge anything it wants, and we have no way to contest the charges......

 

NOT A POLITICAL STATEMENT BUT:

This country spoke its opinion in the last election and it has gotten what it asked for.....

 

Jim (without Ruth)

 

Just another TAX. Get used to it, they are not going down!

[Typhoon1]

If passports reach those prices I'll switch to the card.

 

The only time I use it if for Caribbean or Mexican cruises.

[JORAY]

I have a bunch of years left on mine (just renewed last year)

What are the extra visa pages ($82) and how do you put them into your passport?

 

You don't put them in the Passport Office does. When I traveled on Int'l business I had three put in they are about foot long and fold out. There is also a "business" size passport which has more pages to start with.

 

Ray

[02143]

Passports today include more sophisticated technology than they used to in the past. It's part of our federal government's ongoing efforts to make our border and immigration services more secure. U.S. citizens have experienced less of this than foreign visitors, who have to be fingerprinted, I believe. You're paying more because it costs more to produce the new style of passports.

 

The cost of security should fall on the people who bear the passport rather than the general taxpayer, I believe. It's a small cost compared to a single airline ticket and certainly a cruise, and it's good for 10 years--$13.50 a year.

[02143]

NOT A POLITICAL STATEMENT BUT:

This country spoke its opinion in the last election and it has gotten what it asked for.....

 

That's not a political statement? LOL.

[Mary Ellen]

You don't put them in the Passport Office does. When I traveled on Int'l business I had three put in they are about foot long and fold out.

We had additional pages inserted into our passports a year or two ago. They aren't anything like you describe. The additional pages have a different background motif and are slightly smaller than the original pages, but they are pages. Nothing folds out.

[jtl513]

[quote name='Typhoon1']If passports reach those prices I'll switch to the card.

The only time I use it if for Caribbean or Mexican cruises.[/quote]That's fine, unless you have some trouble and have to fly home.

[califgary]

[FONT=Book Antiqua][SIZE=3]We did not do the expedited passport process. We were told it was taking up to 6 weeks to process our renewal. We just received our new passports; it took only 2 weeks and 4 days from the time we mailed the application to Philadelphia to receive our new passports.[/SIZE][/FONT][/QUOTE]


That is great news! I sent ours out for regular processing - something about sending your passport away and feeling "stuck" somehow - good to hear they are working things quickly hopefully ours will come back as soon as yours did! I got the "we are processing your passport" email last Friday so it seems things are moving along.

[m steve]

the cost of a passport is not significant.

[MrsMuir]

Our passports cost a heck of a lot more than the fees. What day was yesterday?

All you grumpy types who begruge the $13.50 a year fee to USERS (not a tax) should be grateful that you can afford to travel abroad and especially that you have a passport issued by a free country.