It’s a good thing that plenty of travel deals are available these days, because you may need to spend some of the money you save on a new passport. The U.S. State Department has proposed fee hikes that would, for example, raise the fee for an adult applying for a first passport from $100 to $135. The fee for renewal of an existing passport would go from $75 to $110 dollars. The good news is that passports will still be valid for 10 years (five years for children under age 16).

The State Department says that the increased security and anti-fraud measures added to passports in recent years come at a cost, which must be reflected in passport fees. Passport fees also cover the costs of providing emergency services for American citizens overseas who are in crisis situations.

The State Department has also expanded its staff and infrastructure to respond to increased demand for passports. Demand has increased because passports are now required for most travel outside the country, even to Canada or Mexico. There are some exceptions, including travel to U.S. territories, which technically is considered as traveling within the United States.

If you plan to travel outside the U.S., apply for your passport or passport renewal as far in advance as possible. It usually takes four to six weeks for an application to be processed, but a sudden increase in applicants can cause a backlog.

If you already have a passport, check the expiration date – some governments require that visitors have at least six months left on their passports. You may also want to check to see how many visa pages you have left. Since many countries require you to have at least three visa pages upon entry, you may need to apply with the State Department for supplemental pages to be added. While there is currently no cost for the added pages, if the proposed fee increases go into effect, there will be a charge of $82, so it’s best to send your passport and additional visa page application in now to avoid the new fee.

If you need to obtain or renew a passport quickly, there are services that provide expedited processing for a fee. Our travel professionals can give you more details.