After it reaching a week until my flight, I frantically called the support line.
Unaware of this upgrade service until then (I had been busy worrying about work the last few weeks and assumed my passport would “show up” on time – the fool that i was), they told me they would start the request and someone would call me back.
the next day, nobody called back by 6pm, so I re-called the support line and they informed me nothing had been done, and they forwarded me to the support line again, who promised THIS time they would start my request to upgrade.
today, the third day in this hellish process, nobody called me. As it approached 7pm, i called the support line once more and they informed me the “upgrade team” is behind shedule, and taking upwards of 3 days to call people back for “urgent” requests.
It’s now 4 days until i fly, and nobody is being helpful at all!!
at this rate i’m going to have to drive all the way to the passport office to beg them to give me my passport 24 hours before my flight- which is about 3 hours from where i live and even further from where i’m supposed to be catching my plane from!!!!
what a nightmare!
But it does seem the passport upgrade service is overwhelmed at the moment- likely due to a number of requests all reaching the 10+ week timeline now (i wonder how backed up they are for it to have gotten this bad, yikes)!