5 ms·

>Everyone already has a passport. I'm pretty sure most native born citizens don't get passports unless and until they make plans to travel internationally.

chrisseaton 7y ago
Isn’t that risky - what if you suddenly have to travel with business and there’s a delay getting a passport?
- kylec 7y ago
  This is a feature. "Oh, sorry Mr. Boss, I can't go on that trip because I don't have a passport"
  - JohnFen 7y ago
    I managed to get out of a business trip that way once!
- moate 7y ago
  Not really? If I work in food service or retail (largest employment sectors), why is my job going to make me travel to Canada? Most people are only leaving the country for pleasure. That's not to say your scenario couldn't exist, it's just not common I would imagine.
- sokoloff 7y ago
  If you travel to certain state department locations, you can get a next-day passport easily (and I’ve heard of people getting same day). I got one in 4 days and the employees there acted like that was on the long side of the spectrum of people who appeared in person. I’d recommend planning ahead instead, but in my case I couldn’t give up my soon-to-expire passport as I was traveling and didn’t expect another international trip so soon after expiration (to use the alternate means of proving citizenship and identity rather than returning the old passport book).
- JohnFen 7y ago
  The vast majority of the population will never have that situation arise. It seems reasonable that if your job comes with such a risk, you should have a passport -- but you're still talking about a minority of the citizenry.
- cblades 7y ago
  This is a sincere question: what's your background that you have such a skewed perspective of US travel tendencies?
  - chrisseaton 7y ago
    In the UK almost everyone gets a passport as a baby and never lets it lapse for the rest of their lives. Seems like a basic bit of freedom to have. I assumed Americans would want the same kind of basic freedom to move between countries? You'd get a really funny look if you were suddenly asked to go on a business trip to the US and you said you didn't have a passport yet. Not sure why it wouldn't be the same if you were in the US and asked to go on a business trip to the UK.
    - cblades 7y ago
      Ah, from your other comments I thought you were an American for some reason. That makes sense. I think the difference is the size of the US. I've traveled a fair bit for work, but never been asked to leave the country. Jobs that do require international travel often explicitly say so in the description and say you must have a passport. As far as freedom to travel, unless you happen to be on the northern or southern border, you can't just hop on a plane and travel out of country on a whim. It's just flat-out not as easy to travel to other countries here as it is in Europe.
      - deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
    - rconti 7y ago
      No, you would not get a real funny look. I've traveled internationally on business, and whenever I hear anyone (including myself) asked to travel, they'll ask if you have a passport or if you have a current passport. Yes, working in tech, in a major metro city.
    - JohnFen 7y ago
      > I assumed Americans would want the same kind of basic freedom to move between countries? If you're in the US, going to a different country is a major undertaking unless you happen to live near the Canadian or Mexican border, regardless of whether you have a passport or not. Casual international travel is just not a thing for most people.
- diydsp 7y ago
  that has happened repeatedly to people at my last few jobs. they simply didn't travel.
- vkou 7y ago
  If you have to travel for business, you can, at least in Canada, pay a premium processing fee to skip the queue.
- astura 7y ago
  If it were the case that someone worked a job where they'd need to go on an international business trip last minute then their employer would require having a current passport as a condition of employment.

chrisseaton 7y ago

Isn’t that risky - what if you suddenly have to travel with business and there’s a delay getting a passport?

kylec 7y ago
This is a feature. "Oh, sorry Mr. Boss, I can't go on that trip because I don't have a passport"
- JohnFen 7y ago
  I managed to get out of a business trip that way once!
moate 7y ago
Not really? If I work in food service or retail (largest employment sectors), why is my job going to make me travel to Canada? Most people are only leaving the country for pleasure. That's not to say your scenario couldn't exist, it's just not common I would imagine.
sokoloff 7y ago
If you travel to certain state department locations, you can get a next-day passport easily (and I’ve heard of people getting same day). I got one in 4 days and the employees there acted like that was on the long side of the spectrum of people who appeared in person. I’d recommend planning ahead instead, but in my case I couldn’t give up my soon-to-expire passport as I was traveling and didn’t expect another international trip so soon after expiration (to use the alternate means of proving citizenship and identity rather than returning the old passport book).
JohnFen 7y ago
The vast majority of the population will never have that situation arise. It seems reasonable that if your job comes with such a risk, you should have a passport -- but you're still talking about a minority of the citizenry.
cblades 7y ago
This is a sincere question: what's your background that you have such a skewed perspective of US travel tendencies?
- chrisseaton 7y ago
  In the UK almost everyone gets a passport as a baby and never lets it lapse for the rest of their lives. Seems like a basic bit of freedom to have. I assumed Americans would want the same kind of basic freedom to move between countries? You'd get a really funny look if you were suddenly asked to go on a business trip to the US and you said you didn't have a passport yet. Not sure why it wouldn't be the same if you were in the US and asked to go on a business trip to the UK.
  - cblades 7y ago
    Ah, from your other comments I thought you were an American for some reason. That makes sense. I think the difference is the size of the US. I've traveled a fair bit for work, but never been asked to leave the country. Jobs that do require international travel often explicitly say so in the description and say you must have a passport. As far as freedom to travel, unless you happen to be on the northern or southern border, you can't just hop on a plane and travel out of country on a whim. It's just flat-out not as easy to travel to other countries here as it is in Europe.
    - deleted 7y ago
      [deleted]
  - rconti 7y ago
    No, you would not get a real funny look. I've traveled internationally on business, and whenever I hear anyone (including myself) asked to travel, they'll ask if you have a passport or if you have a current passport. Yes, working in tech, in a major metro city.
  - JohnFen 7y ago
    > I assumed Americans would want the same kind of basic freedom to move between countries? If you're in the US, going to a different country is a major undertaking unless you happen to live near the Canadian or Mexican border, regardless of whether you have a passport or not. Casual international travel is just not a thing for most people.
diydsp 7y ago
that has happened repeatedly to people at my last few jobs. they simply didn't travel.
vkou 7y ago
If you have to travel for business, you can, at least in Canada, pay a premium processing fee to skip the queue.
astura 7y ago
If it were the case that someone worked a job where they'd need to go on an international business trip last minute then their employer would require having a current passport as a condition of employment.