Passport is a mandatory document, which is required for international traveling. Infact many people get the passport done as evidence of identity. But many of you might not know that changes are coming in passport. Travel experts opine that it is important to remain updated regarding the changes particularly for travelers whose passports are due to expire in the coming years or months.
As per reports from the State Department, huge rush is expected for passport renewal in 2017 along with getting new passport. This is because the Department is expecting great backlog in applications. Moreover, there will be changes in the passport itself. Read on to find the various changes that are being expected in passports.
Look for passport renewal right now
American passports were not so high in demand until one important travel legislation was made. In 2007 a law was enacted by the 9/11 commission, in which travelers from USA needed passports for traveling to and from Caribbean, Mexico and Canada. During this time, there was unprecedented surge in passport application forms and the State Department had tough time in handling the situation. Millions of Americans got their passport done and the passports have validity of 10 years. Thus in 2017 all these millions of passports will come for renewal, which means that the rush will be great. Instead of delaying the renewal process as there is still time for passport expiry, start working on passport renewal processing at once. The process of renewal takes approximately 6 weeks. Thus, it is better to be safe than be sorry with the passport.
Better security features in the passport
Additional safety and security features are being expected to be added in the US passport to make it more powerful. This will also reduce chances of fraud in passports. The new passports will include highly advanced data chip, which will contain personal information regarding the candidate in detail. The chip has to be scanned on a computer to get the information. The new passport will be lighter in weight as it will have 28 pages instead of 52. However, frequent flyers can apply for a passport with 52 pages.
Real ID changes are not helping much
The REAL ID Act is a new federal law that is being brought in USA. With this law, there will be enforced updates to all state-level- identification. Machine-readable data chips will be used as enhanced form of security measure. All states are not adept in this technology yet and their license for air travel might become invalid. This will be applicable even for domestic trips. As a result, passport applications will increase drastically. By 2020, all licenses should be complied with the law in all the states.
Child passports should be checked again and again
If you love traveling with your children, it is important to ensure that your children have valid passports as well. There are times when you renew your own passport but miss the kid’s passport renewal. This could bring big time trouble. Passport for children are valid for only 5 years. Renewing them involve loads of paper works. These include parent-child relationship, parental consent forms etc.
Passport renewal can be done online via State Department website or in person. There are many passport expedite agencies too which help people in getting their passport renewed in short span of time.
