Tag: passport photo online with free postage

3 reasons people choose online passport photo services over booths

Published on in photography, travel by Paspic

If you’ve been looking into obtaining photos for your passport or the passports of family members, you’re no doubt already quite familiar with the idea of a passport-friendly photo booth. Despite the convenience of such installations, savvy travelers are increasingly leaning upon the benefits of online passport photo services, which allow for self-taken pictures to be assessed and adjusted to meet all relevant standards. Here are a few of the reasons why:

1. Tricky photos

Some photos are simply too finicky to take reliably in a photo booth in a public area. This is especially true if you’re trying to take photos with special considerations for faith, a medical condition, or if you’re taking photos of children or babies. As a child isn’t allowed to have anyone else in the photo, can’t be making too much of an expression, needs to be lined up properly, and can’t have a pacifier, toy, or anything else in place, this is one of the leading reasons for people to prefer online passport photo services. For all of these cases, it’s far easier to take the photo at home, when a good opportunity arises.

2. Reliability

If you take a photo at a booth and submit it, you won’t know of any problems until you receive your rejection. By using a photo service to adjust and submit your photos, you get an extra level of reliability. That means it’s far less likely you’ll find yourself needing to cancel a holiday trip or a cruise due to a surprise passport failure. For many people, this extra safety check is all the reason they need.

3. Convenience

Of course, you don’t need to have any serious reasons to take passport photos at home and use an online service; if it sounds more convenient, that’s because it is. Don’t think an online service is a tool only for emergencies. Plenty of people choose to skip the booth simply because they don’t want to go through the hassle of having to find one. It’s that simple.

If you want to ensure your passport pictures make the grade, then why not use Paspic like lots of other savvy travelers?

How to replace a lost or stolen passport when abroad

Published on in photography, travel by Paspic

Losing or having your passport stolen when abroad is a disaster. Almost all money transactions require identification. Almost all travel requires identification. Any interaction with law enforcement requires identification. And, the only legitimate identification for an American citizen traveling abroad is a U.S. Passport.

Luckily, replacing a passport abroad is not as difficult as one might think. U.S. Embassies are extremely helpful and very efficient with respect to assisting United States citizens.

First 3 things to do when you lose your passport

Once you have retraced your steps in an effort to find a lost passport, and you are certain it is gone:

1) Get online

Before doing anything else, find the location and address of the U.S. Embassy in the country you are visiting. In addition to the address, write down the phone number of the embassy as well. If you do not have access to a computer, find the closest police station and tell them you need to contact the U.S. Embassy.

2) Get two passport photos

Make absolutely certain that the size of the photos are 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm); that distance from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head takes up 1 -1 3/8 inches (25 – 35 mm); that the photo paper is matte or glossy quality; that you are looking directly at the camera; that the background is plain or off-white; and that the photo is in color. Do not have anything on your head (unless you use head wear for religious purposes); have anything in your ears with the exception of an aid, or over your eyes except non-glare prescription glasses.

3) Go to the embassy immediately

Even if you have no money, the embassy can help you. Simply explain your situation to the guard outside and the embassy staff will take care of everything else.

Do not waste too much time looking for a lost or stolen passport. Even an emergency passport can take up to five days to arrive. Every hour you spend looking for a lost or stolen passport delays the arrival of a replacement passport.

If you request an emergency passport and then find your original, call the embassy and notify the staff immediately. Under no circumstances should you dispose of or destroy a passport.

4 passport tips to make your life easier

Published on in photography, travel by Paspic

When you’re getting ready to travel internationally, there are plenty of potential obstacles you may have to overcome, and some that are entirely avoidable if you plan ahead and travel smart. In fact, there are a number of things you can do with your passport that will make travel a lot less of a headache. Here are some of our favorite passport tips that can save you time, money, or just general hassle:

1. Personalize your family passports

If you’re traveling with your children abroad, you are going to need to get a child passport photo taken and apply for a passport for each of your children. That means there are more documents that you’ll be in charge of during the logistics of getting on and off the plane. One way to save time at security and customs is to put a personalized sticker for each family member on his or her passport, so you can keep them organized and give the right one to the right person when the time comes, rather than having to open every single one.

2. Maximize your blank pages

Often, when you get to customs, the agent will open your passport to any blank page to stamp it, which can lead to pages getting used up a lot faster than they’d otherwise need to. So instead of having to get a new passport when your pages get used up, maximize space by simply asking the customs agent to stamp on a particular page, or put Post-it notes over the blank pages to discourage stamping there.

3. Find out if you’ll need a visa

We often assume that we’ll only need a passport when traveling abroad, but there are certain countries and circumstances when you might also need a visa, and you don’t want to be stuck on the day of travel without one. Check the US State Department website to find country specific information.

4. Double and triple check if your passport is valid

If it isn’t, it’s not the end of the world. You can easily take new passport pictures online here at Paspic and apply for a new passport – you just want to make sure you give yourself enough time, or you’ll be stuck paying fees to expedite the process.