Passport Application Minus the Horror

You?ve been dreaming of a once in a lifetime vacation after continuous months of work. You glanced at your office calendar, marked the best date when you can schedule your long-awaited escapade. As you look at the numbers in columns you fantasize yourself running along shorelines, resting your body in front of the crispy sun of the Bahamas. Probably, you?d stay away from the beach drama and go somewhere cozier, Japan or Korea perhaps. But you missed out something. You don?t own a passport yet. Then you felt that your dream has collapsed like a building being demolished.

It?s not the absence of passport that haunts you. It?s the fact that you need to go along the hassle in the process of applying your Washington passport. You can picture the horror of walking along the hallways of the US Washington Passport Agency just to inquire about the requirements, file everything and get rejected in the end. You need not worry about this travesty if you just put in your mind a number of things to remember that will lead your application a carefree one.

Now that you?re really sure you want to fly abroad, you need to apply for your passport at least ninety days before your departure date. Why so early? Many countries require that your passport have six to eight months of validity remaining before they will issue a visa. Yeah, this period may be a long time for you but note this: if you won?t apply for a passport now, picture the greater horror of not having the chance of getting out of the country, for good. Which option would you prefer anyway?

In filling out the passport form in an agency nearest you, in your case, the Washington passport agency, make sure that you get the right application form for you. Remember that each type of passport service has specific criteria that needs to be met. After you fill the form carefully, double-check for any errors. It's better if you have a relative or a friend present that will verify your entries. Stick in your mind that an error made on the application form can lead to delays, or worse, rejection of your passport request. Make sure that you also have the required documents: birth certificate for proof of citizenship along with a valid driver's license for proof of your identity. Your birth certificate must be a certified copy with a registrar's raised, embossed, impressed, or multicolored seal, registrar's signature, and the date the certificate was filed with the registrar's office, which must be within 1 year of your birth. Your driver's license, on the other hand, must not be more than six months old. You also need to send two identical passport photos (either colored or black and white) taken within the last six months.

Before you acquire your passport, assure yourself that you asked to make two copies of it, in case of emergency. Now that you have it, make sure that you always keep your passport in a safe place. Remember, never lay your passport down anywhere. When making a call in a phone booth, be very extra careful or you might forget it or someone might steal it. Remember that application and safekeeping of passports need not be horrifying if you just consider and follow the reminders.

For more information, check out this site onWashington Passport.

Sheryll Cross is a web copywriter for a web design company associated with a Washington passport company in Washington.