The Clanton Post Office will require appointments for those wanting passports beginning April 1.

Before, the post office would simply issue passports as part of its normal workload but found the process was slowing down lines.

“It gets us in a bind, especially if we’re shorthanded,” Clerk Rena Crumpton said. “This is what everyone else does, and we’ve just never done it.”

Crumpton said issuing a passport typically takes 15-20 minutes, and 10-20 are issued during a typical week. Just before summer is a particularly busy time of year for passports as residents are making arrangements for trips.

Making an appointment will ensure postal employees can help all customers in a timely manner and also save those wanting passports from having to stand in line, Crumpton said. Someone with an appointment for a passport will simply walk in and meet with a designated employee.

To make an appointment, call the post office at 755-0320.

Those wanting to obtain a passport need their driver’s license and birth certificate with a raised seal. The post office can take a photo for the passport, but those using their own photos would need to bring two 2×2 photos with a white background.

People 15 and younger have to bring two parents with them to obtain a passport, while those 16-17 need to bring at least one parent.