The New York Times is reporting that the State Department has a message for folks with passports expiring this year: Renew now.
The department anticipates a surge in passport demand because of an expected flood of renewals of 10-year passports issued in 2006 and 2007. That's when millions of citizens scrambled to apply for their first passports because of changes in regulations.
There has also been an increase in first-time applications from states that have not yet complied with the Real ID Act, which sets stricter standards for driver’s licenses and other identity cards.
Another reason to renew soon is that many countries are now enforcing a requirement for at least six months’ validity on a United States passport. The State Department has experienced an increase in frantic calls from Americans who were denied entry at foreign airports and borders because their passports had less than six months to go.