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Atheist · Feb 7, 2012, 02:16 PM

Seriously... I'm so pissed. Went downtown DC this morning to get some blank pages added to my passport. $142 ****ing dollars!!! I don't mind paying a fee but come on now... this is absurd!

AAAAAAACCCCCCKKKKKKKK!!!!!

There... I feel better now.

But seriously... $142 for some blank paper?

turtle777 · Feb 7, 2012, 02:25 PM

But part of the fee was for expedite service, right ?

Just adding pages costs $82 according to this:
Passport Fees

-t

Waragainstsleep · Feb 7, 2012, 02:26 PM

I guess they figure anyone who can afford to fill up the pages in their passport can afford a hefty admin fee to add more pages.

SSharon · Feb 7, 2012, 02:29 PM

Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep

I guess they figure anyone who can afford to fill up the pages in their passport can afford a hefty admin fee to add more pages.

I was thinking the same thing too. How much did it cost in travel expenses to fill up the pages it came with?

el chupacabra · Feb 7, 2012, 02:29 PM

Well you gotta pay for the service, the buildings, employees who do all that stuff... It's not like the trillions we pay in tax dollars pay any of that or anything.

Atheist · Feb 7, 2012, 02:34 PM

Originally Posted by turtle777

But part of the fee was for expedite service, right ?

Just adding pages costs $82 according to this:
Passport Fees

-t

I've never in the country long enough to do it via mail so i had to do it in person. And even after 142 bucks I still had to leave empty handed. Won't be able to pick it up until tomorrow. Which means another trip into the district (which is a pain in the ass).

Atheist · Feb 7, 2012, 02:37 PM

Originally Posted by SSharon

I was thinking the same thing too. How much did it cost in travel expenses to fill up the pages it came with?

My travel is covered by my employer. Anyone who travels a lot for work can attest... it's not a glamorous lifestyle.

turtle777 · Feb 7, 2012, 02:38 PM

That's what all the 1%ers say

-t

Waragainstsleep · Feb 7, 2012, 03:46 PM

Won't your employer pay for the extra pages then?

I don't know about US passports but assuming they have plenty in common with the UK ones, those 'blank' pages are in fact securely watermarked pages which have to be re-bound into the passport, all of which has to be done in a secure facility with various checks done to make sure no-one is trying to do something they shoudn't (for example a passport that had been tampered with might come back looking more legitimate if it wasn't checked), and of course all this has to be done within 24 hours. Its actually not that bad if you think about it. One has to wonder if tax money shouldn't cover some of it but then again, passports are for business (therefore profit) or leisure, so why should everyone pay for only some people to make money or have fun?

nonhuman · Feb 7, 2012, 04:04 PM

I'm pretty sure that it's possible to get a second passport, which allows you to avoid things like having to go into the office in person as you can just use your second passport when you send the first in.

imitchellg5 · Feb 7, 2012, 04:38 PM

I only paid $135 for my whole passport with fees included. Sheesh.

mduell · Feb 8, 2012, 12:47 AM

Originally Posted by nonhuman

I'm pretty sure that it's possible to get a second passport, which allows you to avoid things like having to go into the office in person as you can just use your second passport when you send the first in.

Expensive and only good for 2 years.

nonhuman · Feb 8, 2012, 01:02 AM

Originally Posted by mduell

Expensive and only good for 2 years.

Another alternative: for $30,000 you can become a citizen of the Dominican Republic and be issued a passport. You can do this entirely by mail.

ghporter · Feb 8, 2012, 07:41 AM

$82 to securely physically alter a passport, $60 for expedited service (drop everything you're doing for anyone else and do this right now) fee = $142.

Those aren't "blank paper" pages, they are counterfeit/forgery resistant passport pages. And your passport file now shows that the current book has additional pages in it, so if your passport gets scanned, the results will match the actual book.

Seriously, a secure passport isn't a cheap item, and altering one shouldn't be expected to be cheap either.

Athens · Feb 9, 2012, 03:27 PM

And passports do almost nothing for security. Most threats have managed to obtain real passports. Just another example of "security" going over board.

Do away with passports and go with a chip in the wrist lol. Personally I like the enhanced drivers licenses developed for Washington State and BC. I dont see why they cant replace passports for Air Travel too.

turtle777 · Feb 9, 2012, 07:04 PM

Originally Posted by nonhuman

Another alternative: for $30,000 you can become a citizen of the Dominican Republic and be issued a passport. You can do this entirely by mail.

Entirely by mail ? That's not what I heard.

Dominican Republic, Passport -

-t

mduell · Feb 9, 2012, 11:12 PM

Originally Posted by nonhuman

Another alternative: for $30,000 you can become a citizen of the Dominican Republic and be issued a passport. You can do this entirely by mail.

Not enough visa-waiver countries.

Originally Posted by turtle777

Entirely by mail ? That's not what I heard.

Dominican Republic, Passport -

His claim was 10x as expensive as your link; I bet that goes a long way toward avoiding visits.

Captain Obvious · Feb 10, 2012, 02:08 AM

You can get a passport card in addition to a passport book for travel within North America.

http://travel.state.gov/pdf/ppt_pptCard.pdf

nonhuman · Feb 10, 2012, 10:58 AM

Originally Posted by turtle777

Entirely by mail ? That's not what I heard.

Dominican Republic, Passport -

-t

That's what this site says, anyway: Second Passports - Economic Citizenship Programs - How & Why To Legally Obtain A Second Passport or New Country Residency

reader50 · Feb 10, 2012, 01:35 PM

Originally Posted by nonhuman

Another alternative: for $30,000 you can become a citizen of the Dominican Republic and be issued a passport. You can do this entirely by mail.

Assuming the price has not changed since 1996, you can do better in the Seychelles. Passports available for $25,000. And if local governments catch up with your international crime spree, you can do better still. For $10 million (bottom paragraph), they'll give you immunity from criminal prosecution. Presumably for past crimes - I expect you'd have to cough up another $10M each time you want to update your coverage.

Atheist · Feb 10, 2012, 05:35 PM

Originally Posted by ghporter

$82 to securely physically alter a passport, $60 for expedited service (drop everything you're doing for anyone else and do this right now) fee = $142.

Those aren't "blank paper" pages, they are counterfeit/forgery resistant passport pages. And your passport file now shows that the current book has additional pages in it, so if your passport gets scanned, the results will match the actual book.

Seriously, a secure passport isn't a cheap item, and altering one shouldn't be expected to be cheap either.

You'd be surprised at how cheap the new pages look. They're attached with clear adhesive tape... rather sloppily no less.

Originally Posted by Captain Obvious

You can get a passport card in addition to a passport book for travel within North America.

http://travel.state.gov/pdf/ppt_pptCard.pdf

Only good for travel by land and sea. Anyone arriving by air needs a regular passport.

Originally Posted by nonhuman

Another alternative: for $30,000 you can become a citizen of the Dominican Republic and be issued a passport. You can do this entirely by mail.

I'm actually in the process of getting my Dominican residency. A DR passport would be pretty useless. Can't go anywhere without a visa.