Candian passport delays abroad

waterwaterwaterloolooloo,

PP Canada is implementing a face recognition database and has very stringent photo requirements in place now so that their new system works. Photos are getting rejected for very minor perceived 'imperfections' according to them. I've heard from someone in Ontario that even the photographers there can't get them right. There is maybe 1 in 5 photographers that seem to be getting them right. I think it is pretty unfair that PPC has not posted example rejections and good photos on their site. Otherwise I don't see how anyone is ever going to get it right. Seems like a money making scheme to me on their part.

dave mc

except they're not making the money. Neither are the photogs really, as most of them would have to re-do your photos for no cost.

The only one benefiting is the postal service.

except they're not making the money. Neither are the photogs really, as most of them would have to re-do your photos for no cost.

The only one benefiting is the postal service.

I meant PPC is the one making the money.

dave mc

Well, praise the Lord! Alleluia! It's a miracle! My wife has just informed me that a new passport for me just arrived today. I don't understand it since the PPC rep on the phone 3 weeks ago told me it had been rejected. Maybe they had a change of heart and have eased up on their photo requirements or something. Who knows. So let's see, that process took just over 5 months for PPC to send me a new one. 20 weeks!

Pathetic,

dave mc

I GOT MY PASSPORT.5 days before my trip. Since I wasn't planning to get it on time, I decided to risk calling in about the status (the website tells you that if you inquire about the status, the passport may be pulled out of production and be further delayed). I emailed the office and about 4 days later, I got word back that my passport should have been sent to me at the beginning of June.it wasn't. So, I called the number they gave me 1-800-567-6868. The guy on the phone was very nice and told me to write a letter indicating the urgency and send a copy of my airline tickets, etc. and fax it to 819-994-1270. I faxed my letter and on July 26 and lo and behold, my passport came to me by DHL on July 31. Good luck to all of you trying to get your passports. It was a tight squeeze for me, but I'm very happy I can relax on my trip.

Expedited success!

Renew your passport in person - believe me, it works! My previous post outlined how my application mailed from the US was rejected after 15 weeks of processing due to an unacceptable photo.

I drove up to St Catharine's, Ontario, and got a new photo taken, and then headed straight for the passport office. A mere 90 minute wait on a Wednesday morning and I was good to go. With an added $30 fee for rush service, I had a new passport in hand two days later, on Friday afternoon! Well worth the trip, and not a bad vacation stop in near-by Niagara on the Lake as added compensation.

One caution: If you are re-applying like I did, be sure to take your original application AND your guarantor-signed photos that were rejected. They will need this, especially if the new photos cannot be signed.

Happy with passport in Pittsburgh.

Having been reading this discussion board for quite some time now ad I anxiously awaited receiving my passport.

I fed-exd my application on April 30, arrived in the Quebec office on May 1. I just got it today in the mail, so it took over 3 months.

Glad I don't have to do this again for another 5 years!

For those of you who drove/flew up to Canada to renew in person, I'm thinking of doing the same thing myself and have two questions.

1. Did you apply using your American address or a Canadian address for residency?

2. If you paid the extra rush fees to renew in 1-2 days, how stringent were they on travel plans? My passport doesn't expire till May 2008 but I have travel plans in December that require me to get a Visa so I have to renew before I leave. I cannot renew via mail because I travel constantly for work - will they turn me away?

Appreciate any response in advance - this process is quite the nightmare!

Zaileen

I had to get a new one a few years ago for a visa and I just wrote a letter that said why I needed it early.

Yesterday I received my rejected passport application back. Like almost everyone else, it was the pictures. They highlighted the requirements and underlined the part where it says "no shadows". I can honestly say I have been looking at these pictures and there is no way there is a shadow or anything remotely like a shadow. The fact that it's taking 15 weeks for renewals from the U.S. is outrageous. The system is beyond broke and the fact that I'm sitting here about to send my Japanese wife & kids back to Japan for 3 or 4 months while I get my passport & visa situation sorted out is making me furious. I'm not sure what to do. I have to work, my visa is about to expire and if I send in my application again from the U.S., who's to say it won't get rejected again.
How about taking some unemployed Canadians and put them to work catching up this embarassing backlog?
Furious in Sacramento, CA.