How Long Did It Take To Get Your Passport? Poll

[Lizzzys]

I'm getting nervous, so I thought I would ask others how long it took for theirs. Please post in the following format:

Date you Applied:

Method of Application: (mailed in, went to a passport office, online application or couriered in)

Date Passport Arrived Back:


Thanks!
Liz

 

[F4disneyfan]

Our first 4 arrived in 5 business days and when we got our oldest daughters long form BC and took it in we had hers back in 3 business days.

 

[disneyfan2]

Ok here goes,

Date you Applied: DEC 11, 2006
Method of Application-Postal office Receiving Office
Date Passport Arrived Back STILL WAITING!!!!!

I am freaking too! When i droped it off they said it would be mailed between 15-30 days. As of January they changed the requirements by adding an extra 20 working days. I have less then 2 weeks!!!

 

[laura001]

We sign a lot of passports as guarantors in our office. I would suggest from what I am hearing, that if your passport still hasn't come after applying Dec 11, I would have them check on it.

I had a patient yesterday that that happened to, (she mailed hers in DEC), she called them a week ago, they were supposed to fast track it for her for pick up yesterday (she is traveling today), she went, they didn't have it. Soooo.....yesterday, they redid her appl. etc. and issued her a passport immediately. She just had to have her travel documents.

No harm in checking.

Ok here goes,

Date you Applied: DEC 11, 2006
Method of Application-Postal office Receiving Office
Date Passport Arrived Back STILL WAITING!!!!!

I am freaking too! When i droped it off they said it would be mailed between 15-30 days. As of January they changed the requirements by adding an extra 20 working days. I have less then 2 weeks!!!

 

[disneyfan2]

i just received a email from passport canada after 3 weeks of contacting them and said it will be mailed out the week of Feb 5th. However that is cutting it close as we leave feb 9th!!!

 

[Lizzzys]

Applied: January 5, 2007

Method: Mailed it in because the lineup was over 4 hrs long, and at the time they were saying that they would be processed in 20 business days so I thought I had plenty of time to just mail it in (sent it Express Post)

Received: Still waiting. I did put that our date of travel was March 7, 2007. I just hope that someone at the Passport Office in Quebec is opening the applications up and prioritizing them!!

Know what bugs me the most? Nobody from Passport Canada has come forth to reassure those of us who ligitimately thought they were applying with enough time before their dates of travel, to safely receive their travel documents by the time they needed them.

My upcoming trip was a Christmas surprise for my children. I was not able to get their passport applications done before Christmas as it would have ruined the surprise.

I wish there was an easy way to check on the status of our applications. We shouldn't have to panic like this.

Liz

 

[poohbear7]

If they say 15 to 30 days they mean buisness days and they don't count weekends and holidays. The delay might be because of the Christmas holidays.

 

[Sandra22]

Applied at the Edmonton Passport Office: December 15th
Passports arrived at Post Office: Janaury12th




What a relief it was to have them in hand!

 

[disneyfan2]

Applied: January 5, 2007

Method: Mailed it in because the lineup was over 4 hrs long, and at the time they were saying that they would be processed in 20 business days so I thought I had plenty of time to just mail it in (sent it Express Post)

Received: Still waiting. I did put that our date of travel was March 7, 2007. I just hope that someone at the Passport Office in Quebec is opening the applications up and prioritizing them!!

Know what bugs me the most? Nobody from Passport Canada has come forth to reassure those of us who ligitimately thought they were applying with enough time before their dates of travel, to safely receive their travel documents by the time they needed them.

My upcoming trip was a Christmas surprise for my children. I was not able to get their passport applications done before Christmas as it would have ruined the surprise.

I wish there was an easy way to check on the status of our applications. We shouldn't have to panic like this.

Liz

i agree 100%. I don't think it is fair if at the time we applied that we are given a set time of 15-20 days then later they change it. i emailed passport canada on Jan 12 and just received a response that it SHOULD be mailed Feb 5th and that is when i am leaving!!! I did put the date on the passport as well so i doubt they are prioritizing. I know my CAA agent advised if anyone needs it for March break they will NOT get them! I have been trying to call the 1800 #(what a joke that is) i've been trying for 3 days. This is not fair.

 

[maddiel]

Date you Applied: I applied on January 16th.

Method of Application: In person at the passport office in Halifax It was a rather miserable day weatherwise and I had a wait of less than two hours. I paid an extra $10 to have it processed on site for pick up because I'm leaving Feb 4th.

Date Passport Arrived Back: Don't have it yet but I have a pick up reciept for January 30th

M.

 

[drag n' fly]

I got mine some time ago so it is not relevant. Just to try and put people's minds at ease this is what we found out here. US customs is still letting people through with no passport if they can prove they have applied and are just caught up in the backlog. I am unsure of how long they are going to continue this as they have indicated it will not go on forever. Worst case scenario is after you have exahusted every avenue and you have a plane to catch, take all identification with you including your passport receipt to prove it is in processing. I am unsure if this will guarantee you a seat on the plane but by that point you are willing to try anything. hth

P.S. The Passport Fairy is here wishing you all expedited passports!

 

[siobhan1997]

IMHO I cant understand why anyone would put off getting such an important travel document, Did u all think this would just go away? I am sure the majority of people have known about this for at least 6 months if not at least a year that a passport was to be necessary to travel by air from one country to another. I am sure that most people have had their flights and hotels, etc.booked much farther out, so why would you put off getting your passports and then blame the passport offices for the delays?

Just MHO.

 

[disneyfan2]

IMHO I cant understand why anyone would put off getting such an important travel document, Did u all think this would just go away? I am sure the majority of people have known about this for at least 6 months if not at least a year that a passport was to be necessary to travel by air from one country to another. I am sure that most people have had their flights and hotels, etc.booked much farther out, so why would you put off getting your passports and then blame the passport offices for the delays?

Just MHO.

Well for 1 thing i did not plan on travelling this winter, but i applied for my passport right after booking my trip(once i had pictures and guarantor done) The website recommended going to a service center or mailing in. I chose to go to the Postal service center and verifyied with them how long it would take(doing so, i was charged a $15 convience fee) then the Service centers said 15days we would have it plus mailing time(20 days) This would bring me up to Jan 12th and my trip is not til February. Not everyone will apply for a passport when they have no intention of planning a trip by plane. IMHO this back log should have been realized by passport Canada as they knew this rush would come but have only recently realized how short staffed they are!


Unfortunately, not everyone knows when they get vacation time 6months in advance. Where i work, they start holiday signing in Nov by seniority!
still hoping we all get it in time!

 

[Candid]

Did anyone ever take their passport applications to a Service Canada Centre or a Post Office to be checked before sending it? I did that today and they tried to charge me $15 each on top of the application fee to check them. I wasn't about to pay it so I just stood to one side and re-read each application very carefully before sending them.

 

[MouseGirl]

We were very lucky with our passports:

Date we applied: January 9, 2007
Method of application: In person at the Passport office in Ottawa
Date passport arrived via registered mail: January 19. 2007

Of course, I did end up having to go back again, because our guarantor wrote on the back of one of our daughter's photos that it was a true likeness of her, but then he forgot to sign it!! My bad, I didn't realize it until the agent at the Passport office told me we would have to go back and get it signed. So there I was back in line once again at the Passport office at 6:15 a.m. on January 17 with her application, and we paid the extra $10 to pick it up in person rather than have it mailed. They said it will be ready for pick-up on January 30. I just will feel safer knowing I have it in my hands!

 

[Lizzzys]

I don't think it was a matter of just "putting it off". There are a number of reasons that I personally waited:

1. As the (single) mother of 5 children, the added expense of having to pay for a passport for each of my children just on the off chance I might be taking them to the US, wasn't an expense that I was willing to take on without a firm trip planned. Especially since my oldest is 17 and therefore would require the adult passport at over $80 cost.

2. Passports expire in 5 years. I haven't been to the US with my children since 2002. I couldn't see just getting the passports for the sake of having them and not using them, until I really needed them.

3. Passport Canada is who should have known better. They are the ones who should have expected this surge in new applications. They are the ones who need to step up to the plate and open new offices, hire new people.

Are you aware that there are only 2 offices in Calgary and they serve all of southern Alberta? How ridiculous. They should be opening temporary offices to deal with this.

Most people, unless they travel a great deal, will not bother to get a passport until they book a trip. I don't see this problem going away anytime soon. Passport Canada needs to step up to the plate

Liz

IMHO I cant understand why anyone would put off getting such an important travel document, Did u all think this would just go away? I am sure the majority of people have known about this for at least 6 months if not at least a year that a passport was to be necessary to travel by air from one country to another. I am sure that most people have had their flights and hotels, etc.booked much farther out, so why would you put off getting your passports and then blame the passport offices for the delays?

Just MHO.

 

[maddiel]

I don't think it was a matter of just "putting it off". There are a number of reasons that I personally waited:

(snip)

2. Passports expire in 5 years. I haven't been to the US with my children since 2002. I couldn't see just getting the passports for the sake of having them and not using them, until I really needed them.

What she said. I had no intention of getting a passport this year because I wasn't going to be going anywhere that a passport would be required. A really good, unexpected opportunity came up, so I'm getting one.

Given that the actual useful life of a passport is only <4.5 years, it seems wasteful to get one when you have no trip on the horizon.

M.

 

[Harvestdj]

We applied the middle of October 2006 for passports for our two grandsons, four months prior to the start of out trip to WDW. The passports were finally received on the 23 Jan 2007 only after the intervention of our Federal MP who had them transferred to Calgary for emergency processing. When we picked up the passports in Calgary many people in line told similar stories of lost or misplaced documents. My neighbour did not apply until the 27 Dec 2006 and had her passport in 10 days yet others are waiting months.
Lesson #1 - Apply REAL early
Lesson #2 - Keep duplicates of all documents (Yeah I know it's expensive "BUT"
Lesson #3 - Believe very little of what Passport Official tells you. You talk to six different people you get six different stories.

 

[laura001]

Lesson #3 - Believe very little of what Passport Official tells you. You talk to six different people you get six different stories.

Oh...........kind of like dealing with CRO at WDW

 

[SplashMom]

I realize that lots of people don't get their passports because they aren't sure about travel, but I'm sure thousands of people just didn't bother.

I work with a few people who travel regularly to the US and have never had passports. When I asked them about passports back in September, all three responded that they thought the date would be pushed back. They all have trips booked for March break and didn't want the added expense (although they travel 2-3 times per year!). As a result, they are all in a huge panic because they applied in early January and had to send them by mail because we don't have a service centre nearby. They all paid an additional cost to Canada Post (which could have been avoided if they completed them earlier) and are constantly complaining about the passport office. Who knows if they will arrive in time. The point is they knew it was coming but chose to ignore it. If I know three people who did that, I'm sure there are thousands of others who did the same.

Please understand that I am not referring to the above posters, but that people like my coworkers are making it worse for everyone else.