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$13/year doesn’t seem outrageous. Anyway, it’s either funded by fee or by taxes; I’m not sure I care a lot about how I pay. Parenthetically, I also wonder if th

$13/year doesn’t seem outrageous. Anyway, it’s either funded by fee or by taxes; I’m not sure I care a lot about how I pay. Parenthetically, I also wonder if the €130 feels steeper because you’re used to a more favorable Euro:Dollar conversion rate (obviously this won’t account for the full cost difference between US and Irish passports)?

woodruffw 4y ago
As a nit: US minor passports last 5 years, so it's around $26/year.
mxuribe 4y ago
@throwaway894345 Oh wow, i guess i was brainwashed a little from another article i read yesterday that was a totally separate topic...But when i quickly glanced at your note about $13/year...my brain immediately filled in the blanks with the following marketing: Hey, for the low annual subscription cost of $13/year, you too can travel the world! Dont' just order a one-and-done passport. Order your U.S. travel subscription today, and save! U.S. State department operators are standing by to take your order! And if you order in the next 24 hours, we'll add all of your personal data to our convenience databases (managed by the CIA and NSA), and in the future as you comitt crimes, the data from these databases can be used to automatically auto-fill those pesky law enforcement forms! lol :-D (Sorry, i know that's not what you meant your comment to convey.)
CalRobert 4y ago
I suppose it's more that it's closer to €55 a trip - and the conversion rate is a small part of it, really. Even saying "passports are €130 but you can enter with proof of citizenship" would be better - it just seems bizarre to say "any citizen must be able to enter the US" and "but you MUST have a passport" and then "but not really, though we'll be super annoyed with you" as a policy.
- throwaway894345 4y ago
  > I suppose it's more that it's closer to €55 a trip - and the conversion rate is a small part of it, really. If you look at it in terms of per trip, and you're only planning on traveling twice for the duration of the passport's validity, then yes. Even still, $55 is a <5% increase on the cost of a cross-Atlantic trip. Maybe I'm just jaded by a dysfunctional political system such that this seems like a relatively small inconvenience to me (as far as government dealings go). :) > Even saying "passports are €130 but you can enter with proof of citizenship" would be better - it just seems bizarre to say "any citizen must be able to enter the US" and "but you MUST have a passport" and then "but not really, though we'll be super annoyed with you" as a policy. This seems unrelated to my comment (I'm certainly not saying what you suggest in this quote). Did you mean to reply to https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32609309 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32609309?

woodruffw 4y ago

As a nit: US minor passports last 5 years, so it's around $26/year.

mxuribe 4y ago

@throwaway894345 Oh wow, i guess i was brainwashed a little from another article i read yesterday that was a totally separate topic...But when i quickly glanced at your note about $13/year...my brain immediately filled in the blanks with the following marketing: Hey, for the low annual subscription cost of $13/year, you too can travel the world! Dont' just order a one-and-done passport. Order your U.S. travel subscription today, and save! U.S. State department operators are standing by to take your order! And if you order in the next 24 hours, we'll add all of your personal data to our convenience databases (managed by the CIA and NSA), and in the future as you comitt crimes, the data from these databases can be used to automatically auto-fill those pesky law enforcement forms! lol :-D (Sorry, i know that's not what you meant your comment to convey.)

CalRobert 4y ago

I suppose it's more that it's closer to €55 a trip - and the conversion rate is a small part of it, really. Even saying "passports are €130 but you can enter with proof of citizenship" would be better - it just seems bizarre to say "any citizen must be able to enter the US" and "but you MUST have a passport" and then "but not really, though we'll be super annoyed with you" as a policy.

throwaway894345 4y ago
> I suppose it's more that it's closer to €55 a trip - and the conversion rate is a small part of it, really. If you look at it in terms of per trip, and you're only planning on traveling twice for the duration of the passport's validity, then yes. Even still, $55 is a <5% increase on the cost of a cross-Atlantic trip. Maybe I'm just jaded by a dysfunctional political system such that this seems like a relatively small inconvenience to me (as far as government dealings go). :) > Even saying "passports are €130 but you can enter with proof of citizenship" would be better - it just seems bizarre to say "any citizen must be able to enter the US" and "but you MUST have a passport" and then "but not really, though we'll be super annoyed with you" as a policy. This seems unrelated to my comment (I'm certainly not saying what you suggest in this quote). Did you mean to reply to https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32609309 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32609309?