This Is Not a Drill: Renewing Your Passport Just Got Easier

Like replacing the filter of your air conditioner or making small talk with a third cousin at a family reunion, renewing your passport is one of those annoying things that finds a way to ruin your day/week/month every few years. Unless you’re set to fly extremely soon and qualify to have your new passport expedited, the current process requires making an appointment at the post office or sending in your old passport through the mail for renewal (which, as you can imagine, can be a bit nerve racking). 

But for the first time in forever, we can happily say that we have good news: the US state department is finally letting people renew their passports online. While the system is still in its trial run, it’s set to be fully operational later this year. According to the state department, the new online system will only open for a limited midday eastern time window each day, but it’s safe to assume that once the kinks are worked out, online renewals will be much more widely available. Well, assuming you meet all 10 requirements of course. They couldn’t make it too easy on us, now could they?