New record: More than 24 million passports issued in the past fiscal year

The State Department reported that, between October 2022 and September 2023, more than 24 million passports were issued in the country, breaking the record for a fiscal year.

Through a press release, the State Department also announced that passport processing times will be reduced for those who request one after Oct. 2. For "routine service," it will be eight to 11 weeks, and for "expedited service," it will be five to seven weeks.

"Our dedicated staff have worked countless hours to reduce passport processing times. We are continuously reassessing our operations to maximize efficiencies and are introducing innovations to our customer service and processing models," the State Department said in a statement. "We are investing in supporting and modernizing our technology, increased staffing levels by ten percent, and have hundreds of additional staff in the hiring pipeline. We remain focused on lowering processing times, and this reduction is an important first step."

The State Department clarified that processing times "do not include mailing time."