San Francisco's Guatemalan consulate apologizes for passport delays

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The Guatemalan consulate is apologizing for a legal tangle that has delayed the delivery of passports for months.

ABC7 News was at the consulate office in San Francisco as personnel processed passport applications Thursday. The processing isn't the problem.

The issue is a contractual one with the new vendor that makes passport booklets -- halting production since November, leaving many Guatemalan immigrants in limbo.

"They are very upset. We know they need their passport," said Guatemalan Consul General Patricia Lavagnino. "We have been doing everything in our power to rush the delivery of the passports, however; it's going to take some time."

The Guatemalan government says the issue is close to being resolved, but won't say how much longer people will have to wait for their passports.

Written and produced by Juan Carlos Guerrero