One of the top reasons why trips end up getting ultimately delayed is due to administrative and other legal paperwork that has to be on file before you can travel as you please. The reasons behind it are political in some areas and practical in others — we can debate them until the cows come home. However, the truth of the matter is that you really need to make sure that you get your passport.

It’s not just for when you want to go into another country. A passport is seen as another form of identification. This means that if you really want to make sure that you get everything taken care of in your everyday life, having a passport definitely helps. It’s something that takes documentation to acquire, so even if you’re trying to apply for a job employers know that you have the legal right to work within the country. It’s something that’s usually accepted without other proof required in some cases — like if you’re trying to get a driver’s license.

What about the travel world? Generally speaking, you’re going to need a passport if you’re really trying to travel to anywhere else. It can seem impossible to actually get out there and travel where you want to go, but it doesn’t have to be that way. It really just depends on actually being able to get your passport in a timely fashion.

Unfortunately, there’s usually nothing timely about getting your passport. It can take up to 12 weeks to get your passport, even if you decide to opt for expedited service. Some people report getting a passport in 6 weeks or less, but do you really want to trust that if you don’t have your passport and a trip is looming right around the corner. It sounds like it would be a lot smarter to actually focus on getting your passport first, and then planning your trip.

If you are planning on traveling as a group, you’re going to definitely want to make sure that you budget even more time. This is because everyone moves at a different pace when it comes to actually getting their paperwork turned in. While some balk at the cost of getting a passport, it’s really not as bad as people make it out to be. In the United States a passport is $75 for 10 years. That’s a long time to enjoy your passport, so why wouldn’t you want to keep using it as long as you could?

Even if Americans just want to go to Canada or Mexico or even the British Virgin Islands, they’re going to need their passport. While some argue that you don’t need it for Puerto Rico, you will still want to make sure that you bring it anyway just in case. It’s a good form of identification that says a lot about you even without you having to say a word.

Of course, there’s another reason why you should have a passport — for the stamps, silly! Who doesn’t love the idea of being able to collect a bunch of stamps from their travels? This is something that can easily make things a lot easier later on down the road when you really want to share memories with people of the places you’ve gone. There’s just something special about being able to show off a few stickers from where you traveled all around the world. Even when your passport is no longer valid, you’ll still be able to cheep the book as a memory file, and that’s always a nice touch.

Overall, now is definitely the time to get your passport — after all, your passport is a lot more important than you think!