A passport is a government-issued document that identifies the holder for all international travel purposes. Details on this government document include the passport holder's name, date of birth, sex and birthplace. Rigorous application screenings and paperwork establish the identity of the applicant prior to passport issuance. Applicants must be able to submit proof of U.S. citizenship as well as government-approved identification.
A typical passport contains fifteen pages where stamps with entry and departure dates from foreign countries are placed. When arriving or leaving a foreign country, visitors must report to the customs area for document verification where an immigration officer will look over their passport. Successful verification will be represented by the immigration officer placing the country's unique stamp in the book.
One of the most important functions of passport is to identify the nationality of its holder. An official passport will clearly state the traveler's home country. Simply because the passport has the traveler's country of origin does not mean that it offers the passport holder the same rights of their home country. Countries that do recognize the constitutional rights and laws of the issuing country do so because they participate in international agreements.
Possession of a passport, in itself, will not entitle the passport holder to enter any country. A passport allows an individual to return to the country that issued it if they are denied admission to a foreign nation. Fore example, if a person who acquired a passport form the Untied States is denied entry to any other country, they will immediately be granted entry back into the United States.
