WORTHINGTON -- Nobles County Recorder Lynn Wilson is encouraging anyone with summer and fall travel planned outside the United States to apply for passports now.
After new passport requirements went into effect Jan. 1, in which all people traveling by air outside the United States must have a passport for re-entry, Wilson said there is a backlog of applications to be processed.
As such, passports that used to arrive within six weeks are now taking up to 10 weeks to process. An expedited process is available for an additional fee, but even that is delayed from what used to be a two-week wait to now a three- to four-week wait.
February through April are the busiest times at the Recorder's Office for people hoping to obtain a passport, said Wilson. She encourages those with children or parents who will be traveling outside the United States to also get passports.
With her son now stationed in Iraq, Wilson said if something happened and she needed to leave for an emergency, having a passport will allow her to make immediate plans.
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"I think it's just wise to advise everyone to get their passport," she added.
To obtain a passport, Wilson said people will need to provide a certified birth certificate, an American-issued ID (such as a driver's license), a passport photo and payment. Fees are $97 per adult (ages 16 and older) passport, and $82 for a child's passport. To expedite an application is another $60. Passports for adults are valid for 10 years and five years for children.
Since the new passport requirements have been in effect, Wilson said the recorder's office has collected a substantial amount of revenue -- and that's good for the county. Of every passport purchased through the Nobles County Government Center, $30 goes into the county's general fund. That's not the case if a passport is purchased from another vendor.
Wilson said many of their passport sales have been to people impacted by the ICE raids on Swift & Co. last December.
"All those people are traveling back to Mexico, and they want to be able to take their children back and forth to visit family," she added.
Wilson anticipates the need for passports will remain strong, as new legislation will take effect Jan. 1, 2008, requiring all people traveling outside the United States by land or sea to have a valid passport for re-entry.
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