How I Got A US Passport In 48 Hours

Intro

As I write this post, I am currently in bed in Bogota at 8 pm on a Sunday night. The reason for bringing this up is that if I hadn't gotten this express passport, I wouldn't be in Bogota at the moment.

Do you need a passport and quick? Don't worry, I've got you covered. Life's too short to be stressed.

After Cuba and with my hectic trip coming up, I had to get a new passport and fast (within the 2 weeks I was back in the USA between trips). After researching online, I found a passport office located an hour's drive from my home in Los Angeles! Here are all the details on how I got a passport turned around in 48 hours!

Getting An Appointment

If you need a passport within three weeks, sorry but you are going to have to do it in person. I made my appointment through this link https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast/passport-agencies.html, and it takes about 5 minutes to fill out all the details. There should be appointments available on most days but give it a look.

Appointment confirmation

What You Need For Your Appointment

No, they are not fussy, but you need all of the paperwork (I gave my papers in on some weird cardboard paper, not printer paper). If you have gotten a passport before, make sure you fill out all of the necessary items, and bring them along with you with a stapled passport picture. I got mine at CVS for 17$ but you can get them in other locations as well. Lastly (apart from bringing a picture of your appointment confirmation), you will need a printed ticket for a flight departing within two weeks. If you want, you can book a refundable fare and cancel it two days later, they aren't going to check.

Day 1: At The Agency

Once you get to the office, there will be someone checking your confirmation. Once he checks, you will join the line to enter. For me, the line took about 10 minutes to go through security.

Waiting to go inside

Once you are inside, you head to a counter where they verify your documents and you get a ticket number. Once again, there was a very limited line of about 2 people.

After receiving my ticket, I headed over to take a seat. However, as I went to sit down my number was called! A lovely man verified my documents and told me my passport would be ready in two days. I paid the 220$ all in (no added fees) and left the building. The time from arriving to departing was 25 minutes maximum.

Day 2: Pick Up

I was told to arrive at 1 pm to pick up my passport, but I arrived around 1:15 pm. Once again, there was no line, but make sure you keep your pickup receipt as it was checked by the staff.

 I was in and out in 5 minutes😂 with a new passport in hand!

Honestly, I could not believe how simple this process was. Never in my wildest dreams will I wait to have a passport come in the mail again. It took me 22 months to fill out a passport, so I think I might need a new one in the next 36 months (and this is the big one). This means I will put this to the test again sometime in the next 3 years.

Final Thoughts

Life is too short to stress out, especially over a passport. With the steps listed above it is easier to get an extremely expedited passport than ever before. While I got mine turned around in 48 hours with this method, if you need a same-day one, follow these instructions, but let the person at the counter know you need it on the same day! Hope this helped!