U.S. passport delays have eased — but aren’t yet back to normal

cnbc.com:

Long delays to get a new U.S. passport have eased from earlier in 2023 but haven't yet returned to their pre-pandemic baseline.

As of Nov. 6, the U.S. State Department is processing routine passport applications in seven to 10 weeks, the agency said. It's processing expedited applications — which cost more — in three to five weeks.

Travelers who applied for a passport between March 24 and Oct. 1 — the peak of the backlog — waited 10 to 13 weeks for routine passport processing, and five to seven weeks for an expedited application.

After factoring in additional mailing time, the State Department had been recommending travelers apply at least six months ahead of planned travel or passport expiration.

«Passport processing times are definitely shorter than they were,» said Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet. "[But] it's still a really long period of time if you're trying to jump on some sort of last-minute airfare deal" like ones typically offered on "Travel Tuesday," which falls on Nov. 28 this year.

More from Personal Finance:
Why climate change may cost you big bucks
Gen Z, millennials are 'house hacking' to become homeowners
You may still owe taxes on resold Taylor Swift tickets

Passport processing delays resulted from high demand for international travel as pandemic-era health fears and travel restrictions loosened.

The State Department issued more than 24 million passport books and cards between October 2022 and September 2023, a record number during a federal fiscal year.

The agency has tried to cut the backlog by «aggressively» recruiting and hiring across passport agencies and centers, having passport staff log «tens of thousands» of overtime hours a month, and opening a satellite office to help process