Q I'm expecting a baby in early October, and my husband and I want to bring him or her overseas to visit family during the Christmas holiday. How can I get a passport for the baby pronto?
A "Babies can get passports the minute they are born," according to Robert DeWitt, director of the Minneapolis Passport Agency. That enthusiasm notwithstanding, in practice it's a different matter. To get a passport for a minor, the child must be present at the time of the application and so should both parents. If one parent can't be there, though -- because she's recovering in the hospital, for instance -- the other can bring along a completed, notarized "statement of consent." Filling that out and getting it notarized before the hospital visit, though, would require the impossible (or a leap of faith): knowing the minor's name and birth date.
Your best bet: Once the mother and child leave the hospital, drive as a new family to a "passport acceptance facility," such as a government service center or a post office. (This will make a nice anecdote for the baby book.) You'll need the baby's birth certificate, both parents' IDs and a passport photo for the baby, which you may be able to obtain through the hospital or the passport facility.
Since you are due in early October, you should have no problem getting the passport in your hands before you depart in December. Routine passport applications are being processed in four to six weeks.
If your due date passes by, and you grow nervous about receiving the passport in time, head to the Minneapolis Passport Agency. This office, at 212 3rd Av. S., can process applications within a few days for people with urgent need. The fee for an expedited passport is $60 in addition to the cost of the passport itself, which is $105 for a minor.
For more information and to print forms that you can fill out while you're still in the hospital, go to www.travel.state.gov.
KERRI WESTENBERG
THIS JUST IN
A break on peak-travel fees Good news for holiday travelers: Several of the nation's largest airlines have dramatically cut the number of dates on which they will impose a peak-travel surcharge. The fees, from $20 to $40, are typically added to one-way fares for passengers who fly on such popular travel dates as the day before Thanksgiving. Last year, most large airlines had added peak-travel surcharges on 18 dates from Nov. 18 to early January. But so far, Delta, American, United and Continental airlines have added the surcharge to only six peak travel days, said Tom Parsons of BestFares.com. Those dates: Nov. 27 and 28, Dec. 22, 23 and 26 and Jan. 2.
