St. Johns County responds to high demand for new passports
With demand for new passports on track to surpass pre-pandemic numbers, the St. Johns County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller will hold a special Passport Saturday event on Aug. 6 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. to make applying for a passport more convenient for St. Johns County residents.
“We are excited to hold this special Saturday event to give residents an opportunity to complete an application before school resumes or to get a jump on the upcoming winter holiday travel season,” said Clerk of Courts and Comptroller Brandon J. Patty. “We are anticipating a busy day and will have a great team of deputy clerks ready to facilitate the applications as quickly as possible.”
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
The special passport event offers greater convenience to residents who may have delayed applying and could ultimately find themselves in a time crunch, requiring more costly expedited passport service.
According to the U.S. Department of State, the routine processing time for a passport is between 8–11 weeks.
Paying an additional $60 fee to the State Department to expedite an application speeds up the process to 5–7 weeks. Clerk Patty said a slight majority of applicants this year have paid the federal government’s fee to expedite their applications.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Then some applicants opt to pay a third-party service to accelerate their applications even further — for instance, for emergency or last-minute travel. These third-party vendors physically deliver those applications to the regional federal passport office in Miami, but their involvement can double an applicant’s cost for a passport.
“Our hope is that by making the process more convenient to our residents, it will help them avoid the need for third-party services and exorbitant fees,” said Clerk Patty.
No appointment is needed to take advantage of Passport Saturday. Clerk staff will be on hand to accept, review and certify applications for first-time passports or new passports for individuals whose previous passport was issued more than 15 years ago, whose name has changed, minors under age 16, or whose passport was lost, stolen or damaged. (Note, most passport renewals can be completed by the applicant using Form DS-82 and filed by mail.) Residents can also get their passport photos taken for a nominal fee.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here for important information and details about required documentation, forms of payment accepted by the U.S. Department of State, and any special requirements. Passport applications are available through the Clerk’s website.
Passport applications processed by the St. Johns County Clerk of Court by year:
2017 — 6,724 applications
2018 — 7,789 applications
2019 — 7,951 applications
2020 — 3,099 applications
2021 — 5,720 applications
January–July 2022 — 6,235 applications
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
