State Department To Raise Cost of Passports

The U.S. Department of State will begin raising the cost of new and renewed passports by $20 beginning December 27.

According to Travel+Leisure, travelers will now have to pay $130 instead of $110 in order to apply for a passport or to renew an existing one, along with a $35 execution fee for a grand total of $165. Other fees include a $60 fee to expedite passport applications.

Children under sixteen will have to pay a combined total of $135 to receive a passport beginning next week, too.

The news comes a week after President Joe Biden signed an executive order for the government to design a new digital way to renew a passport. This is likely to take a year to implement, but it should expedite the process significantly since the majority of people renew their passports by mail, which can take longer.

The Global Passport Index has also recently identified the United States as having the best passport in the world this year.

Travelers who will be traveling internationally in the new year are advised to apply for or renew their passports before December 27 to save some money.

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