Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - With travel-related restrictions being lifted following the COVID-19 pandemic, more-and-more people have been looking into international vacations and exploring the world once again. However, if you are to travel out of the United States, you can't get anywhere without the need of a passport.
Already this year, a record number of people have applied for a passport in order to travel outside of the country, which is creating quite the backlog of applications that may not be getting processed as quick as usual.
Erie County Clerk Mickey Kearns is advising those who may be thinking about traveling internationally, plan ahead to get ahead of this problem.
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"We are accepting passport applications in the Erie County Clerk's Office. We do not process those passports, but they're looking, in some instances, 10-to-13 weeks out," said Kearns during an appearance on WBEN with Susan Rose. "I've received many phone calls, and people are panicking. They say, 'Can I get a passport?' Yes, you can. You can get an expedited passport, but it's still about 7-to-9 weeks, so you really have to plan ahead."
With more people confident to travel internationally following the pandemic, many are either applying for their passports, or looking to re-apply with their current passports set to expirie. Kearns says many countries are not accepting passports if it has six months or less before its expiration date.
"International travel is growing, and people are looking forward to getting out there and meeting people, there's more weddings. So people need to plan for the future, and they need to really look ahead," he said. "Even their children, children under 15-years-old still need a passport, that's $100. So it's really an important thing to do."
While one can apply for a passport at their local U.S. Post Office or at a regional AAA location, the Erie County Clerk's Office is another option for anyone needing a passport to travel internationally. Kearns says the Clerk's Office is doing all they can to help with the application process for anyone needing to apply or re-apply for a passport, but knows the Department of State is overwhelmed with passport applications.
Kearns says the only way to get ahead of the potential problem of having your application backlogged for a passport is to plan well-ahead of your trip and get your applications in as soon as possible.
"You can expedite it, you could go to travel.state.gov and ask for an expedited appointment, or you can call their number at 877-487-2778, but really just start planning ahead. Push ahead and try to get an appointment," he said. "If you are a businessman or businesswoman, and it is something that is important and unexpected, you can contact your Congressional representative if it is a foreign trip related to business. So you really have to plan ahead, I can't emphasize that enough.
"Really what I'm asking people to do is go to your important papers, look to see when your passport is expiring. Even if you're not planning a trip, if it is close to under a year, I would get that done, and I would plan to get that done."
For more information on the application process for passports in Erie County, please visit erie.gov/clerk/passports.