Has anyone been to the Chicago Passport Office lately? Are they accepting people without appointments?

Question

If so, how long is the wait? Also, if you did have an appointment, was it still a long wait?

Answer 1

To answer your questions:

1) They are not accepting people without appointments. If you just show up, you will be turned away. They stopped doing this after 9-11.

2) The wait can be between 2-6 hours depending on when you show up, and if you are lucky or unlucky on the amount of line there is.

3) Since everyone has an appointment, you still have to wait in line.

Go here:

http://travel.state.gov/passport/about/agencies/agencies_913.html

...and you will get all the information to set up an appointment. This is the information if you want to get it "same day". However if you can wait 2-4 weeks, you can just visit the nearest post office that does passports and get one expedited. You just fill out the standard paperwork and pay the extra $60 for the service. Be sure to tell them that is what you want, the total is $157. I just did this for my son and was lucky the passport came back in two weeks. In fact it came back the day before a notice from the passport office on how to track it....would make a person laugh if it wasn't so sad.

Answer 2

I doubt that they see anyone without an appointment... Check out the website http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html. They have information there on how to get your passport quickly if you're travelling within the next 14 days or if you have a family/medical emergency... They also mention how long the processing time will take depending on what type of application you've filled out ( Passport Processing Times Have Increased Due to High Volume). For information about the passport application process, the status of a passport application, or an emergency passport, visit The National Passport Information Center (NPIC) phone number: 1-877-487-2778.

" To obtain a passport for the first time, you need to go in person to one of over 8,000 passport acceptance facilities located throughout the United States with two photographs of yourself, proof of U.S. citizenship, and a valid form of photo identification such as a driver’s license.

Acceptance facilities include many Federal, state and probate courts, post offices, some public libraries and a number of county and municipal offices. There are also 13 regional passport agencies, and 1 Gateway City Agency, which serve customers who are traveling within 2 weeks (14 days), or who need foreign visas for travel. Appointments are required in such cases.

You’ll need to apply in person if you are applying for a U.S. passport for the first time: if your expired U.S. passport is not in your possession; if your previous U.S. passport has expired and was issued more than 15 years ago; if your previous U.S. passport was issued when you were under age 16; or if your currently valid U.S. passport has been lost or stolen. " http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html


How to get a passport:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/first/first_832.html

Processing Times:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/processing/processing_1740.html