Passports are issued exclusively by the U.S. State Department, at Passport Application Acceptance Facilities throughout the country. A list of these facilities can be found online; post offices are a common place for obtaining a passport. Outside the U.S., passports can be obtained at any U.S. embassy or consulate.
Applicants must provide the application form, proof of U.S. citizenship, photo identification, the applicable fees, and two standard passport photos. Minors must be accompanied by both parents, or a notarized form signifying the absent parents' permission, and those parents must also supply valid identification.
Applications are typically processed within four to six weeks from the time of application; expedited service is processed within two to three weeks door to door. Online tracking of application status is available.
U.S. Passport Cards can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports of entry (but cannot be used for air travel). They are smaller, more convenient and less expensive than full passport books.
These cards contain vicinity-read radio frequency identification (RFID) chips to increase speed, efficiency, and security at U.S. land and sea border crossings. This allows Customs and Border Protection inspectors access to biographical information about a traveler. Cards are issued with protective RFID-blocking sleeves to guard against unauthorized reading or tracking of the card when it is not in use.
The U.S. Electronic Passport (e-passport) is similar to a regular passport but also includes a small contactless integrated circuit (computer chip) embedded in the back cover. This chip securely stores the data which is also presented on the passport's photo page, and also includes a digital photograph which allows for the use of facial recognition technology at international borders. These measures allow automated identity verification, faster inspections and increased U.S. security.
If a passport chip fails, the passport remains a valid travel document until its expiration date, and you can still be processed normally. These passports also include additional security measures to prevent unauthorized reading of the information stored in the chip.
The U.S. did not have a passport requirement until 1941, with a few exceptions. They were required briefly during the Civil War from August 19, 1861, to March 17, 1862; recommended by President Woodrow Wilson's Executive Order 2285 of December 15, 1915; and from May 22, 1918, until the formal termination of World War I in 1921.
Passports first became mandated June 21, 1941, by 55 Stat. 252, and have been required ever since. Biometric passports were first issued in August 2007.
Every passport contains a data and a signature page, with a digitized photograph of the passport holder, and data about the passport its holder. The following information is included: standardized photograph; type ["P" for "passport"]; code ["USA"]; passport number; full name; nationality; place and date of birth; sex; dates of issue and expiration; authority; and endorsements. At the bottom is a machine-readable zone, read by an optical scanner, which includes all of the above information.
The signature page must be signed by the holder or someone with legal authority to sign on the holder's behalf.
Passport photographs are 2 inches wide by 2 inches tall, full front view with closed mouth and open eyes; full head from top of hair to shoulders; white background; normal lighting; and no shadows, sunglasses, or hats.
U.S. passports include the following message in English, French and Spanish: "The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen/national of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hindrance and in case of need to give all lawful aid and protection."
