OHIO — People need passports in order to leave the country, but right now it is taking three months or even more to get them. AAA predicted that this will be a busy spring and summer of travel, so this has caused delays in the application process.

What You Need To Know

  • Passport wait times are up to three months

  • This is because of the increased desire to travel to different countries

  • AAA gives people the option to take their passport photo at any of their locations

  • While they cannot process the passports, they work with an organization that speeds up the process 

Jessica Widmer and her husband, Jeremiah, planned a trip to Punta Cana to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary, but it almost didn’t happen. When they went to renew their passport, Jessica was led to believe they would be there before the trip.

“We didn’t expedite them. We just paid for the normal, which was supposed to be here in six to nine weeks,” she said.

Widmer said they were told the passports would not come in time, so they took matters into their own hands. 

“My husband decided to just call our state senator’s office, and they helped us get an appointment in Buffalo,” she said. 

Buffalo was the closest same-day passport agency closest to them, so Widmer and her husband drove there to get their passports and are ready for their trip in April.

Not everybody has been this lucky. Lynda Lambert with AAA explained how their team is trying to help.

“You have the ability to get your passport photo taken and then that will be one step towards the process,” she said. 

AAA cannot process passports, but they have been working with an organization that has sped up the process for people.

“We have partnered with a company called ‘Rush My Passport’ and they have connections with the U.S. State Department. They even reserve places in line so that you can go turn in your documentation. They have people online who can talk you through the application process. They’ll help you find all the correct forms, all the documentation that you need,” she said.

Lambert suggested people that are traveling this year should get their passports as soon as possible.