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At a time when the prices on so many things are increasing, the cost for a U.S. passport is going up too.
Starting Monday, Dec. 27, fees are rising by $20 and the increase applies for all new passports, as well as renewals, according to the State Department. The price hike is needed so officials can “continue to produce one of the most secure travel and identity documents in the world,” the department said on its Twitter
TWTR,
account.
In other online messages, the department said the price increase pertains to “an increase in the security surcharge component of the passport application.”
Before the fee hike, an adult paying for a new passport book had to pay $145, comprised of a $110 application fee and a $35 acceptance fee. Starting Dec. 27, the total charge will be $165.
The previous price for a renewal was $110 and now it’s $130. A new passport for a child, under age 16, was previously $115 and now it’s $135.
The fee will depend “on when the application was submitted,” the State Department said, responding to tweet comments. The State Department did not respond immediately to a request for further comment.
That’s a new cost nibble for people who are planning to get new passports or renewals, but it’s a minor relief to people who already applied for the travel document and are waiting.
Routine processing times for U.S. passports now take eight to 11 weeks. If you want to pay more for expedited processing, the turnaround is five to seven weeks, the State Department says.
Expedited service costs $60 and one to two day delivery costs $17.56, the department said.
Of course, the big question is what the appetite — and rules — for international travel looks like as 2022 unfolds with the delta and omicron variants still upending plans.
Earlier in December, data from the travel booking site Hopper showed fares for international flights were edging down, with a 2% drop for outbound flights and a 5% drop for inbound flights.
The State Department issued almost 15.5 million passports in fiscal year 2021. That’s up from 11.7 million in 2020, but still shy of the 20.6 million passports in 2019.
