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August 2024 by Conner Estes
People talking about efficiency on here lol. Took 1.5 hours to get through the line and checked in. Then the lady asked me since I lived 2.5 hours away whether I wanted to get the passport today. Conveniently leaving out that it could be anywhere from 5-7 HOURS of waiting. Something that could have been entirely avoided for the cost of $20 since shipping it would have sufficed. So instead of spending $20 on shipping I have $35 in parking and possibly tickets laying on my vehicle for this basket case of incompetence. Not to mention 7 hours of my birthday wasted. Zero rhyme or reason to who is given their passport first. You could be the last to arrive and first to leave. Take the mailing option if you have the time!!!!!!!!!!
They also have no signage outside telling you that the passport section of the building is through the left doors. When you arrive there is a gigantic line of immigrants outside and you can’t tell whether to wait your turn or find another way in.
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August 2024 by Diana Morris
This was the smoothest and fastest government agency I’ve ever experienced. Every employee was friendly, professional and welcoming from the security at the door that greet you. give instructions at the doors & security on the 9th floor, to the employees servicing you. Same day passport, I am beyond thankful for this agency and the individuals they employee. We don’t see enough friendly individuals servicing the public those days. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
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August 2024 by Melodie Thornton
Took me too long to make this review. The staff deserve all the recognition they can get. They are absolutely amazing.
I had an emergency with passports for my two children. The night before my flight I realized their passports had expired. Somehow by the grace of god I got a slot for an appointment the next morning. Chicago is 4 hours away from where I live and I had an international flight leaving that night. I got in, the lack of sleep and traffic had me shaking by the time I got to the building. They could see my nerves were shot and how I was on the verge of tears with every word I said. I was in this state because the flight was for my mother in law who died and my husband was waiting in England for us and it was important to a lot of people that we attend, especially legally. The staff was graceful and kept reassuring me that I will make the flight.
The time was crunching down where I had an hour and half left till my flight would take off, we were there for many hours because my husband was not there to give permission in person or to sign a form they needed for the kids to get their passport renewed. It was a super long process and I was barely holding it together. We figured it out, and our name was called. The woman who issued us the passport even said we are extremely lucky, or someone is looking down on us that the passports were made so quickly. I left in tears and saying thank you to everyone I passed by and hurried to the airport. I made it to checking with 30 seconds to spare. I can’t thank the staff enough. I would give 100 stars if I could.
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August 2024 by Rachel Malone
I had an appointment this week to get a rushed passport. From the time I walked in the building, the security was organized, friendly and very pleasant. I got upstairs and the staff directed us to a line, the line moved pretty fast and there was another worker letting us know to have all of your documents before you step to the window. I stepped to the window, got everything taken care of, I was told to have a seat until my number was called. Five minutes later, my number was called, and the worker at the counter confirmed all my information, I paid and was told I would have my passport in 2 days. I received it in 2 days!!!! The whole process took maybe an hour. I was thrilled because I took off the full day from work, thinking I'd be down there all day. Thank you to everyone at the Chicago Passport Agency, you have a very efficient process. I couldn't be more appreciative.
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August 2024 by Daniel
This was the smoothest and fastest agency I’ve ever experienced. I literally did not spend no more than 20 minutes inside and got my passport mailed to me the next day! Both ladies at the window who helped me out were fast, friendly and efficient. The last one assured me my passport would arrive on time before my trip and it literally got there 24 hours after my appointment.
Pro tip: I made my appointment completely online and I found an appointment slot right away, no need to call that number for appointments.
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August 2024 by timmyvee59 Vierling
So I found out the hard way leaving for Europe with my wife that the expiration date of your pp has to be, in some cases, 3-6 months after the scheduled end of your trip. Mine wasn't, and with my wife heading to Sweden, I called the pp service after hours and received an appointment for same day service the very next morning. From the moment I arrived 45 minutes before my appointment to the time I picked it up at 2:30, I was met and instructed by collectively the nicest employees I can recall. Despite dealing with the public and probably the same behavior and questions EVERY day, they were courteous and kind. The woman behind the counter who took my documents said, "Sure, no problem, we can get this to you today," and it made the rest of my day much more relaxed and enjoyable. I hope she knows that she had that effect on me and probably a lot of others.
Make sure you have an appointment, make sure you pay attention to the documents you need to bring with you and be on time, in fact be a little early because the lines are pretty long in the morning and you will be fine. Thank you all involved in making this much easier than I thought it would be and, in fact, made it possible
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August 2024 by Yusra Maan
Everyone at the chicago location was simply amazing and so helpful! They run everything so efficiently and the wait is not long at all though it looks like it! They were able to help print me a new passport within 2 hours so I could catch my flight on time that same day!
So grateful!
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August 2024 by Justin Koress
Great Service, Very nice staff. Was very surprised
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August 2024 by Randi Gladstone
On the day of my trip to Spain I learned of a passport requirement that deemed my current US Passport inadequate. And prevented me from boarding a flight with friends. Instead, I cancelled my flight and flew to Chicago from NYC to get a same-day passport extension (over the 4th of July). As you can imagine, this was a very stressful situation in which a 10pm flight to Spain 2 days later than originally planned was contingent on my being granted a same-day passport. The team at the Chicago Passport Agency is unprecedented! They are organized, understanding, & patient. Their herculean efforts secured me a passport by 3pm on the same day as my appointment, and I was able to board my PM flight and arrive in Spain for my summer vacation. Thank you very much for all of the help! I am forever appreciative of your efforts.
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August 2024 by Essy Kasia
This agency blew my mind today. The efficiency, the customer service, the staff at this place showed up for work today, I have never felt so well taken care of. From the guyz at the security desk, to the girls manning the long lines, to those behind the windows, top notch service, hands down perfection. The events leading to my husband and I ending up here were quite stressful, these guyz here were so efficient, organized, knowledgeable and so good at what they do. We came back home with new passports and we will be able to travel to be with family tomorrow. That would not have been possible if it weren't for this agency. Thank you all so much, you've restored my faith in humanity, especially in today's world where good help has become almost impossible to find. Continue doing what you are doing, you are making a difference in so many peoples lives, thanks again.
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August 2024 by David Massey
Show up at 8AM regardless of the time the appointment is for. Everyone is queued up. The downstairs security people validate that you have an appointment via txt or email or print out. Then through a metal detector and then to 9th floor. On the 9th floor you are lined up again and they validate you have a passport photo and you have filled out the paperwork. That line was about 5-8 minutes. Once you make it to the window in this line they validate the rest of your documentation, they then copy it, put a little packet together and hand it back along with a number. My number was called the second it was handed to me. When they call your number they tell you which window. At that window they validate everything is in order and tell you when to show back to pickup passport.
This location could give serious lessons to anyone in the customer service industry. You can tell they want to prevent negative experiences.
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August 2024 by Emma Nilsson Delew
8:30 am appointment is not tied to the time. You can show up any time of the day of your appointment.
My husband needed a new passport with a correction made to his lastname (as passport office has previously added a fault space in the middle of his lastname) and filled out the form for "new passport" rather than "renewal of passport", and paid the subsequent fee which is almost $100 more. He showed his birth certificate and social security, which are both spelt correctly, and was told the typo would be corrected.
2 days later, the new passport arrived, with the typo intact. If this is a result of incompetence or any other reason is still not confirmed, as they didn't contact him with a justification of ignoring / rejecting the correction of the typo. So, he still has a misspelt passport and is out of pocket an additional $100 for no reason whatsoever.
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July 2024 by Tia J.
Why do I have to send back old passport on my dime? Post office told me I didn't have to! No wonder the US is deteriorating!
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July 2024 by John Doe
The people in this Office deserve a special place in hell. They caused me to miss one trip and delay another. I paid for expired service and they claimed that it didn't show in their system. Then they kept throwing hurdles my way like saying I owed taxes. I had show them an IRS receipt showing I didn't owe taxes. Then they claimed my IDs weren't valid. So, I sent in a copy of my college ID in which they said the ID image was too small. All they had to do was zoom the image. Instead I had to enlarge the image and re-send. They they claimed I didn't have a valid address. I had to get a Senator's aid to help me.
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July 2024 by Ryan
This place is really organized and run very efficiently. After reading these reviews I thought I would be able to pick up my passport same day but that was not the case. Just keep in mind you might have to come back here a different day to get it. Not sure how they are picking and choosing who picks up the passport same day or not.
