Facing passport demand that is already running 18 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels, the U.S. Department of State has unveiled a coast-to-coast series of “Special Passport Acceptance Fairs” throughout April. The first round of events kicked off on April 9 and continues on April 10 with walk-in service in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico before expanding to more than a dozen states over the coming weeks. Locations range from post offices in rural Alabama to university campuses in California, with many fairs held on evenings or Saturdays to reach applicants who cannot visit a passport office during the workday. Officials say the goal is to prevent a repeat of last year’s 10- to 13-week routine-processing backlog that disrupted countless business trips and assignment start dates.
![State Department Schedules Pop-Up Passport Fairs Nationwide to Tackle Summer Backlog]()
Individuals unable to attend a fair or seeking a streamlined digital option can turn to VisaHQ, which assists U.S. citizens with passport renewals, replacements, and global visa applications through an intuitive online platform. The service keeps applicants informed at each stage and can often shorten overall turnaround by flagging documentation issues early; details are available at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
Applicants can submit Forms DS-11 or DS-82, supporting citizenship evidence, and have photos taken on site; standard government fees still apply. Some fairs accept walk-ins, while others require appointments by phone. For corporate mobility managers the fairs offer a practical stop-gap while the State Department pilots an online-renewal portal that remains invitation-only pending security certification. Companies with employees slated for overseas assignments this summer should alert travelers to the fairs and remind them that many countries, particularly in the Schengen Area and East Asia, require at least six months of passport validity on arrival. The State Department also reiterated that passport applicants should rely solely on information posted at travel.state.gov. The warning follows a rise in look-alike websites charging “processing” fees for services the government provides for free—a scam that has already triggered complaints to the Federal Trade Commission. In the medium term, the Department says it is hiring 700 additional adjudicators and investing in a new scanning system that will shave two days off the average processing time once fully deployed in 2027. Until then, mobility teams should build extra lead time into assignment timelines and consider reimbursing employees for the US $60 expedited-service fee when travel dates are firm.
Individuals unable to attend a fair or seeking a streamlined digital option can turn to VisaHQ, which assists U.S. citizens with passport renewals, replacements, and global visa applications through an intuitive online platform. The service keeps applicants informed at each stage and can often shorten overall turnaround by flagging documentation issues early; details are available at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
Applicants can submit Forms DS-11 or DS-82, supporting citizenship evidence, and have photos taken on site; standard government fees still apply. Some fairs accept walk-ins, while others require appointments by phone. For corporate mobility managers the fairs offer a practical stop-gap while the State Department pilots an online-renewal portal that remains invitation-only pending security certification. Companies with employees slated for overseas assignments this summer should alert travelers to the fairs and remind them that many countries, particularly in the Schengen Area and East Asia, require at least six months of passport validity on arrival. The State Department also reiterated that passport applicants should rely solely on information posted at travel.state.gov. The warning follows a rise in look-alike websites charging “processing” fees for services the government provides for free—a scam that has already triggered complaints to the Federal Trade Commission. In the medium term, the Department says it is hiring 700 additional adjudicators and investing in a new scanning system that will shave two days off the average processing time once fully deployed in 2027. Until then, mobility teams should build extra lead time into assignment timelines and consider reimbursing employees for the US $60 expedited-service fee when travel dates are firm.
