Express Passport Renewal

[Jeff.Zorrilla]

Hello,

I have to make a trip to Cuba on April 20th but the last time I came back into Argentina they said that my passport was too full of stamps. Now that you cannot get more stamps I set up a date at the embassy to renew my passport but the soonest open date is April 9 and it says that the processing time is 15 days which leaves me out of luck. Does anyone know of any rapid processing service for passport renewals?

Thank you!

 

[steveinbsas]

You may have misunderstood what you were told the last time you came back into Argentina.

The issue may not be that there isn't enough room in your passport for you to get more stamps.

It's more likely that the issue is that you have too many entries into the country as a tourist and have "abused" the tourist visa (aka the I-94).

That is illegal (and has been since 2010).

Even if you could get a new passport full of blank pages before April 20, you will have to present your old one when you leave.

I haven't heard of it happening recently, but you could be told at that point you cannot return for a number of years.

And when you do return and present your new passport, all of your previous entries will appear on the immigration agent's computer screen.

All that being said, you may get back in without any problem whatsoever.

You will be at the mercy of the immigration official whose line you get in when you return.

 

[steveinbsas]

PS: In case you were told you cannot get more stamps in your present passport because there really isn't space for any more, you might not have to "renew" your present one.

Though I've never done it, I believe it's possible to get additional blank pages inserted into a passport which has not expired.

Perhaps this could be accomplished more quickly than a renewal...

 

[tom808]

Unfortunately they stopped adding passport pages in 2016 according to state.gov: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/apply-renew-passport/faqs.html

"Can I get extra visa pages for my passport?

No, you cannot. Applicants who need additional pages in their valid passports must obtain a new passport by mail. Applicants within the United States may choose a 28-page or 52-page book."

 

[sts7049]

i will be surprised if there are any legit express renewal means outside of the country. you may be stuck with those dates from the embassy unless you feel like making a last minute trip to the US and doing an express renewal there.

 

[steveinbsas]

i will be surprised if there are any legit express renewal means outside of the country. you may be stuck with those dates from the embassy unless you feel like making a last minute trip to the US and doing an express renewal there.

If there is enough space in the passport for additional entry and exist stamps, it's unlikely that a new passport will "solve" the problem.

If there really isn't enough space, the OP won't know for sure if it will until he tries to reenter Argentina with a new one...

...especially if the present passport is "full" of Argentine entry and exit stamps which establish a pattern of abusing the tourist visa.

 

[sts7049]

i have heard before that when you start to run out of stamp spaces you need to be prepared to renew or get a new passport, say down to a couple free pages or something like that. i'm not sure why exactly that's an issue, but apparently it is. the state dept website mentions this as well on their FAQ

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/apply-renew-passport/faqs.html

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Different countries have different entry requirements. Since you mention Cuba, they require a visitor to have two, completely blank pages in a passport according to insightcuba.com. If you don't have two, completely blank pages, you will need a replacement passport before you go. If you have two or more blank pages in your passport then I guess that, when the official you were talking to said your passport was too full of stamps, they meant that they believed you had made an excessive number of arrivals and departures to Argentina.

 

[Stantucker]

i will be surprised if there are any legit express renewal means outside of the country. you may be stuck with those dates from the embassy unless you feel like making a last minute trip to the US and doing an express renewal there.

I thought you could just show up at the embassy here without an appt, if it was an emergency. But is this not considered an emergency?

 

[steveinbsas]

I thought you could just show up at the embassy here without an appt, if it was an emergency. But is this not considered an emergency?

If there is actually space in the passport for additional stamps, I don't see how it would be considered an emergency.

PS: And anyone who is running out of space for additional stamps "should" be able to see it well enough in advance to get a new passport...

That being said, reporting and replacing a lost or stolen passport might be considered an emergency...