RUSKIN – Planning to hop a plane for a soothing get-a-way to the Caribbean islands?
Or, perhaps a flying trip to Mexico is on the agenda.   

Then, again, Canada is wonderful in the summertime – and not that far by air.
Just don’t forget your passport.  Unlike years past when visiting any of these adjacent independent nations for an American was as simple as a plane ticket and a state driver’s license or social security card for identity purposes, a U.S. passport now is an absolute necessity.    

Obtaining a passport today involves a cost - $107 routinely – and some time – 10 to 12 weeks usually.  For South Countians, the process can be initiated close to home and within a day or two – in the offices of Hillsborough’s Clerk of Circuit Court at the county’s SouthShore Regional Service Center on 30th Street.

The passport application process was offered for the first time last week in three of Clerk of Circuit Court Pat Frank’s offices – downtown Tampa, Brandon and SouthShore.  Before week’s end, more than 200 applications were completed in the three offices, according to Martha Bingham, clerk’s office customer service director.  The SouthShore office handled 51 applications in the first week, she added.    

Taking advantage of the new passport application process offered locally, Emili Cann (right), of Ruskin, completes U.S. Department of State paperwork with the help of Gretchen Davis (left), senior supervisor in the SouthShore offices of Hillsborough’s Clerk of Circuit Court. Cann, who termed the process “super-easy”, plans to wed Richard Tindel, Ruskin, in September and is looking forward to a honeymoon in Costa Rica. Melody Jameson Photo

For South County applicants, the process begins with an appointment to complete the required forms, said David Jones, SouthShore clerk’s office director. Appointments can be made Monday through Friday, between 8 AM and 5 PM, by telephone at 813/276-8100, extension 3813, Jones added.  Approximately 30 minutes is required for each individual application and sufficiently longer appointments are made for applications by several family members at one time.

Each new applicant should bring to the appointment an original birth certificate bearing a county or state seal (a hospital seal alone is not sufficient) or naturalization documents or a citizenship certificate to prove U.S. citizen status, Jones noted.  In addition, a state driver’s license or government or military ID is required to establish identity.  Those renewing an expired passport should bring the old document with them, if possible.   

The application form contains multiple sections but is not complex.  It requires basic personal information such as full current name, permanent address, social security number, location of birth, date of birth, physical description, along with previous names used, emergency contact information and minimal data about parents, if known.
Jones also pointed out that each application must be accompanied by two identical photos of the applicant.  Such photos can be supplied by the applicant but must meet the passport standard; most candid snapshots are not acceptable.  

As for application costs, Jones suggested each applicant be prepared with two checks, one for the U.S. Department of State, the passport issuing agency, and one for the clerk’s office.  The routine total cost of $107 for an applicant 16 years or older includes the $67 fee for the federal agency, $30 required by the clerk’s office and $10 for two passport standard photos using photographic equipment especially designed for the purpose.  The federal fee for applicants not yet 16 years old is reduced to $52, Jones added.       

The official advice on time required to receive a passport is six to 10 weeks, Jones said, adding that his office currently is suggesting a 10 to 12-week waiting period because of a backlog created by the new federal regulations now mandating passports for flights to the adjacent nations.  

An expedited application process is available in the system for an additional $60 fee, Jones said, and if Federal Express is utilized at yet another cost as a means of transmitting the application, the timeframe can be cut to about three weeks.    

Once the application is completed, it, along with appropriate documentation and photos, is sent either by U.S. Mail or courier service to the National Passport Processing Center in Philadelphia, PA, Jones explained.  Upon review and acceptance by the state department, all original documents plus the small blue booklet embossed with the American Eagle and including pristine pages ready to bear stamping from exotic ports of call are sent directly to the traveling applicant.  U.S. passports normally are good for 10 years.

© Copyright 2007 by The Observer News Publications and M&M Printing Company, Inc.

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