subject: US Passport Renewal for Business Travelers [print this page] These days, international business trips are more common than ever. Your company could send you overseas for a conference, training session and/or a meeting with international clients. What do you do if you need to leave the country for business on short notice and you see that your passport is expired?
If you have an upcoming business trip and an expired passport, you have a few different options that will allow you to get your US passport renewal in time. First, if you have at least 3 weeks, you can use the government's expedited US passport renewal option. Write "Expedite" on your passport application envelope, pay the expediting fee of $60 plus $14.96 for overnight delivery, and send it overnight using express mail. Processing time for an expedited passport renewal using this option is usually 3 weeks, but be sure to check with the Department of State as that could increase if they have a lot of applications to process.
If your business trip is scheduled sooner than that, call 1-877-487-2778 to make an appointment with the nearest Regional Passport Agency. You must apply for your US passport renewal in person if you are using a Regional Passport Agency office. These offices operate by appointment only, so don't expect to just walk in, either. However, many Regional Passport Agency offices offer 24 hour processing. Please note, in addition to the normal application material, you are also required to confirm your travel dates by bringing a travel itinerary or a company letter.
The final option is to use a private passport expediting company. For a fee, a passport expediter will hand-deliver your US passport renewal application to the US Passport Agency for processing, and then rush your passport back to you. Processing times are quick, and you don't have to worry about traveling to the passport agency. Although you do have to pay an extra fee to the expediting service, for many business travelers it is a worthy expense.
