Mission
The highest priority of the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA) is to protect the lives and serve the interests of U.S. citizens abroad. Across the globe, CA serves fellow citizens during some of their most important moments – births, adoptions, medical emergencies, deaths, arrests, and disasters. CA also helps U.S. citizens connect with the world by issuing millions of U.S. passports each year. CA keeps the United States safe and helps foreign nationals connect with the United States by issuing visas to qualified visitors, workers, and immigrants. Customers can receive information on consular services by visiting the Department's official website at https://travel.state.gov/.
Designated Services
Designated Services
Applying for a U.S. Passport
Currently, there are 160 million valid U.S. passports and 48% of all U.S. citizens have a passport. U.S. citizens can apply for their passport at one of the 26 domestic passport agencies or at one of the 7,500 passport acceptance facilities located throughout the U.S., and can renew their passport conveniently through the mail. To ensure wide availability of Passport Services, Consular Affairs is working to update the Online Passport Renewal experience, piloted in 2023. Customers eligible for online renewal will submit an application at their convenience, providing access to passport services even when traditional brick-and-mortar acceptance facilities, such as post offices, are closed.
Accessing international travel information services (via travel.state.gov)
Travel.state.gov is often the entry point for customers seeking to understand and access most consular services. The site is often the "front door" to complex services and less complex customer tasks not captured elsewhere, such as accessing travel information by country and signing up for travel advisories and alerts by email. Travel.state.gov international travel pages provide trusted international travel information, providing travelers with instructions on accessing consular services, information on travel advisories and country-specific information, and the ability to sign up for travel advisories and alerts by email.
Action Plans
2022 Action Plan commitments are detailed in Executive Order 14058