Carbon County Prothonotary Kayla Semmel announced that her office will be offering a new service.

Starting May 3 you can now get your passport photos taken in the office. This is a service that has never been offered through the prothonotary’s office before.

The services will be offered to people 5 years old and up.

Semmel said there are limitations to the service and that the reasoning for not being able to offer photo services to children under 5 includes the space and time it would take to readjust the equipment. The sheriff’s office offered similar services around 6 years ago with similar restrictions to their service.

“This is a service that I heard requested over and over again by our constituents. It really is an inconvenience to have to go to a retail location to get your photos taken and then, if they are not acceptable against the U.S. Department of State’s standard, we would have to advise the individual to have their photos retaken or chance sending in the application and see if it would be rejected by the Passport Agency.

“You run into all sorts of issues in a situation like this, if you have a trip planned you might have to reschedule and it’s a burden. Our system allows us to take a photo and it runs the photo against the parameters set forth by the U.S. Department of State. If it does not fit the criteria, for example the face isn’t the right measurements in the frame or the background is too dark it will indicate that on the screen for us to adjust or retake the photo,” Semmel said.

The cost of the photos will be $15. The office is accepting passport applications for all counties at this time by appointment only.

“I strongly encourage anyone who plans to travel to plan accordingly and allow yourself ample time to receive your passport. The standard processing time currently is 8-10 weeks. There is an option to expedite for an additional fee, and that fee is charged by the Department of State,” Semmel added.

The deadline to apply for the Real ID is October. Individuals have the option to obtain a Real ID or a Passport/Passport Card depending upon intent of travel. To obtain more information on which best fits your needs, you can gain information at the Prothonotary’s Office, on their Facebook Page or to gain information pertaining to the Real ID you can visit www.dhs.gov.