Passport Application Backlog Causing Months-Long Delays

If you're headed out of the country in the next year, state and local agencies say to get your passport now.

A backlog is forcing many people to cancel or postpone trips since they can't get their passports in time. Tulsa County Court Clerk Don Newberry says the application process used to take around three weeks. Now, it's taking up to six months.

"If you're going to need one in the next year, I'd say go ahead and get it done," Newberry said.

When the passport application is completed at the Tulsa County Passport Office, employees say it's processed and mailed within a day or two. But once it's in the federal system, it could take months until you get the passport.

The State Department says it may take up to six weeks to come through the mail, then enter the system. Then it could take another few months to get the passport, depending on if you pay extra to expedite.

Newberry says one woman's been waiting for four months for her renewed passport and may miss her trip. Brandon Whitworth came to the Tulsa County Passport Office with his son. He's going to Mexico for his senior spring break trip next year.

They're starting the passport renewal process eight months in advance.

"We wanted to be proactive and get a jump start on the process," Whitworth said.

"There's just a slowdown everywhere and it's all a result of the pandemic," Newberry said.

That's when the federal backlog started. The county passport office was closed for a couple of months, and no one was traveling.

"Last year during COVID when everything shut down, the federal offices all shut down, the post offices shut down," Newberry said.

With more people taking vacations, the demand skyrocketed. Newberry says the slowdowns are happening at the post offices and federal passport agencies. He says your best bet is to get in line as soon as you can.

"I think it's just a matter of time as things return to normal and then they catch up. And so, it'll probably take a little while," Newberry said.

For any questions, you can call the Tulsa County Passport Office at 918-596-5411. If you need to travel internationally for an emergency reason, you can call the duty officer at 202-647-4000 or the federal office at 877-487-2778.