Yes. The one I got for my honeymoon in 1997 expired. My last job I needed one for foreign travel, and while I traveled extensively in the U.S. (pre-COVID), I only used my passport 4 times. Three business trips to Canada (Toronto, St John's Newfoundland, and Montreal). All fine trips. My wife and son and daughter renewed their passports so we could all go to Jamaica in early 2019.

Good to have.

In my military days I was required to have a current official and personal passport and I have stayed in the habit of keeping my personal passport current. With children who are career military we always keep ours current just in case. Also on the few cruises we have been on we had to have a passport if the ship touched foreign ports. It is also important to note that if your passport expires within a certain number of days some countries will not allow you to enter. Some countries require the expiration date be 90-180 days past your last date of travel. I believe Spain was 6 months. Airlines will not let you on the plane if your passport does not meet those criteria.

Ive had a passport since I was 17. I like traveling overseas and used to do it a lot for work.

Took kids to Europe in 2016 and 2019 and to MX in 2018.

Yes for as long as I can remember I have kept a current passport. The last 20 years I have travelled internationally for work and always added a small holiday to the trip.
Interestingly while I have always lived and worked in Canada I was born in the US and was recently informed that I should have been traveling to/from the US on a US passport. So I need to get a new passport and have not had a US passport when I should have over the past 50+ years.

quote:

Global Entry
What in the world is that?

Expedited entry through customs.

There is nothing worse than being 5 seconds behind the entire contents of an Airbus or Boeing widebody that just puked out its bolus of the mass unwashed. Standing there, waiting and watching as 500 people fumble for passports and struggle to operate kiosks. Global Entry helps alleviate most of that.

quote:

Originally posted by Rev. A. J. Forsyth:

quote:

Global Entry
What in the world is that?

Expedited entry through customs.

There is nothing worse than being 5 seconds behind the entire contents of an Airbus or Boeing widebody that just puked out its bolus of the mass unwashed. Standing there, waiting and watching as 500 people fumble for passports and struggle to operate kiosks. Global Entry helps alleviate most of that.

Global entry is fantastic. Only problem is you still have to wait for your bags with everyone else

^^^ Yes it is but I can go pretty much anywhere on business for up to a month with a carry-on bag and a computer backpack. Global Entry gets me through so fast you can sometimes change to an earlier connecting flight. TSA Pre comes with Global Entry which really gets you through security quickly too.

About the Passport Card - didn't know it was good for domestic flights so I'll keep that in mind. My Indiana DL is a Real ID so I have that covered, but I have my passport (actually two now - new one and expired one with unexpired visas) in my backpack at all times when I'm in the U.S. When I'm out of the country the passport is locked in the hotel room safe unless I know I need it, and I carry color photocopies in the backpack. Some say you should have the passport on you at all times, but I've never been asked to show it except for flights, trains, and hotel check-in, and some places that have a security checkpoint that is known in advance. Too valuable a thing to chance losing it or getting it stolen.

Stickman - I've been to Japan half a dozen times, and a few times to the Forbidden City (2) and Great Wall (3). Both China and Japan are quite different than you might think. Sometimes very different. No Vietnam yet, maybe in the future.

My wife and I both have valid passports.

My family all have ours. My wife and son went to Guatemala for a mission trip this summer. And hopefully another cruise is in our future...maybe not too soon though.

I have both and keep both current even though I have no intention of ever leaving the U.S. again.

They work great for proving U.S. Citizenship or right to work in the U.S. came in handy first time I tried to eFile my taxes and got rejected. Had to go to the local Social Security Office and prove my date of birth.

They also come in handy when you need to provide two forms of government issued photo ID.

I see a U.S. Passport as something I’d rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

Got the Real ID drivers license when I found out it would be a requirement for entry into Federal Office Buildings. We have a lot of Federal Office Buildings around here.

Mine is expired though in the next few months I plan to renew as the renewal process seems easier than starting from scratch.

Yes, I travel internationally often. I use a passport renewal service. Much faster and hassle free.

Passport (Blue)
Passport Card
Official Passport (Red) (5 years)

I got all of them in 2018, so good for a bit.

Never got the "Black" Passport...

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:
Yes, I travel internationally often. I use a passport renewal service. Much faster and hassle free.

Have you had much of a hassle with renewing? I've done it three times and were painless.

Here's an update from State, they claim to be back from pre-covid processing times. USPS, on the other hand...

If you need a passport (or to renew), I say do it sooner and not later.

https://www.state.gov/passport...ssing-status-update/

Passport Processing Status Update
MEDIA NOTE
OFFICE OF THE SPOKESPERSON
OCTOBER 29, 2021

The Department of State is committed to processing passport applications as expeditiously as possible. Reducing the volume of pending passport applications, shortening processing times, and increasing agency counter services remain top priorities.

Today, we are updating our public information to reflect that routine processing of a passport application now takes 8-11 weeks, and expedited processing (for an additional $60) takes 5-7 weeks.

These new processing times reflect a return to the way we defined our processing times before the pandemic. Our processing times now begin the day we receive your application at a passport agency or center, not on the day you mail your application or apply for a passport at a local acceptance facility. We are no longer using door-to-door timeframes to calculate our estimated routine and expedited service times. Mail times vary across the country. Please plan ahead and apply early.

We will continue to provide regular and transparent updates about passport processing times, knowing how critical this information is to our fellow Americans and their travel plans.

For more information and the latest processing times, visit

https://travel.state.gov/conte...el/en/passports.html

For press inquiries, please contact CAPRESSREQUESTS@state.gov.

I had to renew my passport here in Puerto Rico as they wouldn't exchange my old REAL ID driver's license for a PR REAL ID. Essentially, they stranded me here because I had no way to board an airplane. I mailed in my renewal in mid September and got a new passport in 3 weeks. It took me almost 4 months to get my PR driver's license.

I do not.
I don’t much like leaving my property, much less venturing somewhere where I don’t speak the language and can’t count the money.

I do as I've done a bunch of world travel in my career. I doubt I'll be doing any going forward though (non-vaccinated).

My employer paid for my passport to send me to England for a week to approve some equipment. When it gets close to expiring, I will renew it.

I was a Product Manager for a Fortune 500 company for many years. That meant frequent trips overseas and required a passport. My wife and I still keep the passport current as we live close to the Canadian border. two years ago, when we went to Canada, the transition was very easy. Perhaps my Federal employment and the credentials made a difference, maybe not!