Where to Apply for a Passport If You Live in Texas
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4
Texas residents can apply for a passport at local application acceptance facilities, regional agencies and private expediting services. The criteria for choosing one method over another are how quickly you need to obtain your travel document and the amount of time you have to commit to the application process.
There are hundreds of passport offices located throughout the state of Texas. A large number of these passport offices are located in local post offices. Public libraries and clerks of court also serve as locations for passport offices. Texas residents who live in towns that do not have a passport office will need to check in nearby cities.
Applicants have the choice of regular or expedited services when submitting an application at a passport application acceptance facility. It can take 4 to 6 weeks to process an application for regular service. It can take longer during periods when the number of requests increases significantly. Some applicants have been known to wait more than 3 months to receive their travel document. It takes 2 to 3 weeks or more to expedite an application. Again, this can take longer during peak travel periods.
Texas Passport Agencies
There are now two regional passport agencies located in Texas. The Dallas Passport Agency is located in the Earle Cabell Federal Building on Commerce Street. The George Thomas "Mickey" Leland Federal Building is the site of the Houston Passport Agency.
Both the Dallas and the Houston passport agencies attend U.S. citizens who need to travel outside the U.S. within two weeks or less. The U.S. Department of State Passport Services state that travelers need to schedule an appointment. The agencies are closed on weekends and federal holidays.
Passport applications that are presented at a regional agency are usually processed on the same day as long as all the required documents are correct. It could be the following day before a passport application is processed and the travel document ready.
Passport Expediters
Texas residents who need to get their passports in a hurry but are unable to visit one of the regional agencies, can still get their travel document in time by applying through a private expediting services. Expediting services have a special relationship with the U.S. Passport Services of the State Deparment which allows them to represent those who contract their services and get passports for their clients as quickly as the same day.
There are many expediters located in Texas, especially in Dallas and Houston. You are not limited to expediters in Texas and, in fact, there are a couple of advantages to this. A reason for this is that there is a limit to the amount of same day passports that each regional passport agency will process. Authorizing an expediter to submit your application at an agency outside of Texas could possibly result in faster processing.
Two, not limiting your choice to expediters located in Texas allows you to choose the best expediting service independent of location. Not every expediting service is equal terms of experience and professionalism. Allowing for passport expediters located in the U.S. provides you with a larger resource pool from which to choose the best rush passport expediting service.
Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.