The paperwork for a first trip abroad is mostly timing and fees, and the rights when a flight goes wrong depend on where it departs and who operates it. This guide puts the dates, dollars and euros in one place, using the State Department’s and regulators’ own figures.
From the State Department fee chart (updated October 2026): an adult’s first passport book is $130 plus a $35 acceptance fee, and a child under 16’s is $100 plus $35. Two adults and two children: 2 × $165 + 2 × $135 = $600. Expediting all four adds $240 ($840 total), and 1-3 day delivery for four books another $107.48 ($947.48). The passport fee calculator totals any mix of first-time, renewal and child applications and splits the two payments.
As of October 5, 2026, the State Department lists routine processing at 4 to 6 weeks and expedited at 2 to 3 weeks, not counting mailing time of up to 2 weeks each way. For a family flying out on July 15, 2027:
| When | Step |
|---|---|
| October to December 2026 | Apply: the State Department calls this the less busy season. Two adults (first passports) and two children under 16 apply in person on Form DS-11; children need both parents or guardians, or a notarized consent form. |
| Same day | Pay two separate amounts: application fees to the U.S. Department of State, and $35 per person to the acceptance facility. |
| By May 6, 2027 | Latest safe date for routine service for a July 15, 2027 departure: up to 2 weeks in the mail, 4-6 weeks processing, up to 2 weeks back. |
| By May 27, 2027 | Latest safe date with expedited service (2-3 weeks), adding $60 per application. |
| Within 14 days of departure | Only an urgent appointment at a passport agency, with proof of travel, will work. |
| Before booking flights | Check the destination’s entry rules and passport validity requirements on the State Department’s country pages. |
Processing times change with demand; the busiest period runs from late winter through summer, so the dates above are the latest safe ones, not targets.
| EU261 (Regulation (EC) No 261/2004) | U.S. DOT (14 CFR part 260, 2024) | |
|---|---|---|
| Which flights | Departing the EU, Iceland, Norway or Switzerland on any airline; arriving there on an EU airline | Flights to, from and within the U.S. sold by covered airlines and ticket agents |
| Delay | Cash compensation for arriving 3+ hours late at the final destination (Sturgeon, 2009) | No compensation; refund only if the delay is significant (3+ hours domestic, 6+ hours international) and you choose not to travel |
| Cancellation | Refund or reroute, plus compensation unless notified 14+ days ahead or rerouted within the Article 5 limits | Automatic refund if you decline the alternative or none is offered |
| Amount | €250, €400 or €600 by great-circle distance; can be halved for quick reroutes | Fare, taxes and paid extras back to the original form of payment |
| Exceptions | Extraordinary circumstances (severe weather, air traffic control, security) cancel compensation, not care | Refund is owed whatever the cause |
| Timing | Set by national law and the airline; complaints go to national enforcement bodies | 7 business days for card purchases, 20 calendar days otherwise |
| Care while waiting | Meals, drinks and a hotel when needed | Depends on the airline’s own commitments |
The practical difference: in Europe a long delay can earn cash on top of getting where you are going; in the U.S. the law protects your money only if you give up the trip. A U.S. airline flying New York to Paris is outside EU261 on the way out but covered on the way home, because the return departs from the EU. The flight delay compensation calculator works out the distance band and coverage from the two airports.
1. Write down times. Note the scheduled and actual arrival time at your final destination; for EU261 the Court of Justice measures arrival when the aircraft doors open. 2. Ask the reason in writing. Airlines must show extraordinary circumstances to avoid EU compensation; a written reason helps later. 3. Take the care you are owed in the EU (meal vouchers, hotel) and keep receipts if you pay yourself. 4. Decide on the replacement. In the U.S., accepting a rebooking ends the refund right for that flight, while declining a significant change or a cancellation triggers the automatic refund. Under EU261, the rerouting choice affects whether compensation can be halved. 5. Do not sign away cash. EU compensation can be paid in vouchers only with your written agreement. 6. Claim afterward from the operating airline, then the national enforcement body (EU) or the DOT complaint process (U.S.) if refused.
Neither page replaces the official decision. Passport eligibility, special cases (lost passports, name changes, passports issued abroad) and processing times are set by the State Department; whether a cause is extraordinary is decided by the airline, national enforcement bodies and courts. UK flights follow their own post-Brexit rules, which this guide does not cover.
If the trip is for work, employers commonly reimburse lodging and meals up to the GSA per diem rate for the destination; fiscal 2027 rates started October 1, 2026, with a standard $113 a night for lodging and $68 a day for meals and incidentals. The per diem calculator looks up the city and month.
U.S. Department of State, passport fee chart (updated October 2026) and processing times page (updated October 5, 2026). Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (in force February 17, 2005), Articles 3, 5 and 7. Court of Justice of the EU, Sturgeon and Others, C-402/07 and C-432/07 (November 19, 2009), and Germanwings, C-452/13 (2014). Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 14 CFR part 260 (89 FR 32832, April 26, 2024). All accessed October 22, 2026.
The State Department listed routine processing at 4-6 weeks and expedited at 2-3 weeks as of October 5, 2026, plus up to 2 weeks of mailing each way.
$600 for two adults’ and two children’s first passport books, including the $35 acceptance fee each; $840 expedited.
No. U.S. rules give an automatic refund for cancellations and significant delays you decline, but no cash compensation.
Only if an EU, Icelandic, Norwegian or Swiss airline operates it; flights from Europe to the U.S. are covered on any airline.
Record the arrival time, ask for the reason in writing, take the meals and hotel you are owed, keep receipts, and claim from the operating airline afterward.
Only with an urgent appointment at a passport agency and proof of international travel within 14 calendar days.