definitely use the barcode - but I 100% guarantee you the processing time depends on the post office or facility you use - for some unknown reason the Jericho Post office on Long Island, NY is the fastest Passport processing facility in the United States - literally you get your passport within 2 weeks, max a month without any expedited shipping. (And the experience is absolutely painless, easy, fast and a pleasure).. On the other hand, The Hicksville, NY post office , literally 1 mile away took 4 months for the exact same type of U.S. passport & card! and we went to both post offices within 3 days of each other.. (and the experience was horrible at Hicksville - took forever and the clerk was nasty! wouldn't even let us smile!!).