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> I recently got passports for my kids, and that was super easy to do as well and the passports came much faster than expected. Interesting. I am currently ren

> I recently got passports for my kids, and that was super easy to do as well and the passports came much faster than expected. Interesting. I am currently renewing my and my spouse’s passports while also trying to get first time passports for my children and I couldn’t find the process more outdated and borderline kafkaesque. If you told me the website was built in 2003 and hasn’t been updated since then I would believe you. I can only renew my passport by snail mailing everything including my existing passport. I can only get my kids a passport by physically taking them to an approved location for processing. I could not get an appointment for about a month at any location near me. As a bureaucrat myself, I just find this level of hoop jumping to be ridiculous.

saratogacx 2y ago
For a short time (maybe 6 months or so) the state department was testing out fully digital passport renewal. I was able to slip in and it was great, digital phone photo, fill in some forms and I had a new passport in the mail after a couple of weeks (I didn't pay for rush processing). It was taken down after the pilot for them to adjust and fix the process but there are improvements in the works. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/have-passport/renew-online.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/have-pa...
op00to 2y ago
I got an appointment within a week. The post office took the pictures and submitted everything for me. Couldn’t have been easier. Sounds like experience varies based on location. I did a digital renewal for my passport and it was fine also. It’s a once in many year event, so it doesn’t bother me that I need to go to a special place to submit documents.