On Saturday, September 17, the Mt. Pleasant Post Office, 1050 Johnnie Dodds Blvd., 29464 will hold “Passport Day in the U. S. A.” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to allow customers convenient Saturday walk-in access for applications without an appointment. Applications are normally accepted Monday through Friday only.

Saturday hours are especially helpful for families, as children under 16 must have both parents available when applying for a passport. Applicants are encouraged to fill out an application ahead of time, visit the Dept. of State website, at: http://travel.state.gov/passport/pptday/locations/locations_4442.html

Currently, most passports cost $135 for adults and $105 for children 15 years of age and younger. Standard processing (4-6 weeks) or pay an additional $60 for Expedited processing (2-3 weeks, door-to-door). To help the passport application process run smoothly and efficiently, the Postal Service recommends the following:

• Bring in proper proof of American citizenship. This must be either: a certified birth certificate issued by the city, county or state; a previous U.S. passport; a certificate of citizenship; or a naturalization certificate. (Please note: a hospital-issued birth certificate alone is not acceptable.)
• Bring in proof of identity. This must be either: a previous U.S. passport; a naturalization certificate; a certificate of citizenship; a current valid driver’s license, government ID or military photo ID.
• The passport application requires two identical color photographs of you, which are available at the Post Office for $15.
• Bring long form birth certificates that include names of parents for children under 16, even if the child has had a previous passport.
• If child has had a previous passport, bring that passport too.

We’re everywhere so you can be anywhere: www.uspseverywhere.com

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A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. We’re everywhere so you can be anywhere: www.uspseverywhere.com. With 32,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $67 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 29th in the 2010 Fortune 500. Black Enterprise and Hispanic Business magazines ranked the Postal Service as a leader in workforce diversity. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency six consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.