State Department processes 11,000 more passports than last year

The Passport Office of the Puerto Rico Department of State (PRD) handled 11,391 additional passport applications compared to the same date last year, Secretary of State Omar J. Marrero Díaz announced today.

The number of applications processed was due to the high demand for the travel document and the close collaboration between the Department and the U.S. Department of State's San Juan Passport Agency.

"Oncethe COVID-19 travel restrictions ended, the number of passport applications increased exponentially. This was confirmed by the number of applications that were handled at DEPR offices throughout the island," said Marrero Díaz.

During FY 2021-2022, the DEPR served 20,056 applications, while in FY 2020-2021, it served 8,665, representing a 57 percent increase in services offered over the previous year.

The Plaza Las Americas office received the most applications, totaling 11,325. The Fajardo office handled 3,497 applications. The Ponce office processed 1,222 applications and the Arecibo office processed 4,012.

For his part, David Giamellaro, director of the U.S. Department of State's San Juan Passport Agency expressed his gratitude to the passport agents who, in the Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands region, have processed 80,224 passports so far this year. The official indicated that if this trend continues, the agency expects to return to pre-pandemic average numbers.

Giamellaro took the opportunity to urge travelers to apply for their passports during the months of October to February, as demand for the official document decreases and processing is faster.

Marrero Díaz concluded by announcing that, thanks to the collaboration between the federal and state passport office, the local agency received authorization to establish a new passport office in the municipality of Humacao.

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State Department processes 11,000 more passports than last year

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