Where is your US passport right now? Is it squirreled away in your desk drawer? In your purse? Still in the passport holder you wore around your neck on your last trip?
Wrong, says Jean Chatzky of The Daily Journal. According to Chatzky, because your passport is such an important document, it needs to be located somewhere safe, where you can find it instantly if you have to leave your house in an emergency. She suggests making a list of all things you would want to take with you in an emergency-your US passport, birth certificate, backups of important family photos, bank account information and any other documents that are important and hard to replace.
You might think that the best place to store these original documents would be in a bank vault somewhere, but Chatzky advises against this because you might need the documents in a hurry. She says that it’s best to store copies of your US passport and other important documents in a safe deposit box. However, your original passport should be located with the other documents somewhere in your house.
Of course, disasters don’t always wait until you are home to strike. So, ideally, you should store your US passport and everything else in a fireproof, waterproof safe. Just don’t lose the key or forget the combination!
It’s 10:30 pm. Do you know where your US passport is? If you do happen to lose your passport, you need to report is missing immediately by calling 1-877-487-2778 between 8 am and 10 pm. Then, you’ll need to submit Forms DS-11 (Passport Application) and DS-64 (Statement Regarding a Lost or Stolen Passport).
Passport applications normally take about 6 weeks to process if you request normal processing, and about 3 weeks if you request the government’s expedited processing. If you need your passport faster, using a private passport expediting company like RushMyPassport.com is the quickest and easiest option. Depending on the processing option you choose, RushMyPassport can have your passport processed in as little as 24 hours!