PAINESVILLE, OH — As a community service and to make it easier to apply for a U.S. passport, the Painesville Post Office is announcing a special Passport Fair on Saturday, April 1 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Painesville Post Office, 215 East Jackson Street, Painesville, Ohio 44077.

In addition to the expanded passport acceptance hours, extra staffing will be on hand to assist customers.  No appointment is necessary for the Passport Fair; walk-ins are welcome and passport photo service will be available.

Ba recommends bringing original documents and following these guidelines:

• Download and complete a passport application at www.travel.state.gov beforehand. 

• Bring proper proof of U.S. citizenship (as shown on the application DS-11 dated 09/2013).

• Bring proof of identity. This must be either: a recently issued U.S. passport; a recently issued naturalization certificate; a recently issued certificate of citizenship; or a current valid driver’s license, government ID or military photo ID.

• Bring a photocopy of your proof of identity.  Each applicant must bring a front and back photocopy of the ID that will be presented at the time of passport acceptance.

• The passport application requires a recent passport photograph of you (2” x 2” in size). 

• All applicants must appear in person (including minors). Minors under the age of 16 must appear with both parents. If one parent is not available, a notarized authorization from the absent parent is required.

Only need to renew a passport? Well, the State Department says you should do it now—and they mean ASAP. That’s because the agency is expecting an epic amount of renewal requests due to millions of passports set to expire. Ten years ago, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative was a law passed requiring U.S. citizens to have a passport in order to travel to all countries, and soon those passports will no longer be valid. The State Department says it’s looking at about 47 million passports set to expire this year alone. If you’re planning a trip overseas in the next six months, don’t wait.

The U.S. Department of State provides detailed guidelines for preparing passport applications and supporting documents as well as current processing times at: www.travel.state.gov. Postmaster Billing indicates USPS.com is also an excellent resource for obtaining the paperwork and locating acceptance facilities across the nation.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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