CANADIANS FORCED TO CANCEL OR RESCHEDULE TRAVEL AS PASSPORT DELAYS CONTINUE.

By Chandrayee Roy Choudhury, Canada: Many Canadians are reporting lengthy delays and wait times at passport offices as the federal government works to process almost a million more applications over the past year.

After issuing only 363,000 passports between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021, Employment and Social Development Canada, which oversees Service Canada, says this rose to nearly 1.3 million over the following year.



People across the country reported that they

 had to cancel or reschedule their vacations amid the long wait times.

As of Friday, many have yet to receive their passports, despite some applying back in February.



Many Canadians are reporting lengthy delays and wait times at passport offices as the federal government works to process almost a million more applications over the past year.

After issuing only 363,000 passports between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021, Employment and Social Development Canada, which oversees Service Canada, says this rose to nearly 1.3 million over the following year.



The government said Service Canada is also dealing with tens of thousands more calls, with more than 200,000 received daily up from about 5,000 prior to the pandemic.



EXPERT ADVICE ON PASSPORT DELAYS

As eager Canadians look to travel following two years of pandemic restrictions, one expert says long wait times for renewed passports will be the "new normal" for those taking vacations this summer.

Martin Firestone, president of Toronto-based travel insurance brokerage Travel Secure said

Given the long wait times, said it is best not to book a trip until you have your renewed passport in hand.