The Passport Crisis Is Heating Up

More than 17 million Americans are expected to apply for or renew passports in 2016,

up from about 1.5 million in 2015.

If your passport is expiring this year, you better renew it soon, the State Department said last week. About 125 million Americans hold passports today, and 40% of them--almost 50 million in all--will expire in the next three years

Passport offices already are busy fielding extra requests from travelers in the states with Real ID issues, though the Department of Homeland Security recently pushed the deadline for compliance to Jan. 22, 2018.

Renewing a passport costs $110 and can be done by mail, but first-time applicants must apply in person. The process takes about six weeks, but it can be expedited.

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