What is Travel Registration? |
Travel registration is a free
service provided by the U.S. Government to U.S. citizens who are traveling to,
or living in, a foreign country. Registration allows you to record information
about your upcoming trip abroad that the Department of State can use to assist
you in case of an emergency. Americans residing abroad can also get routine
information from the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.
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More Information/FAQ |
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What can you do? |
- Register a foreign residence
- Register a trip
- Register a group trip
- Register to receive Travel Warnings
- Register emergency contact information
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FAQ |
For more information, please read our FAQs by clicking on the questions below: |
What is Travel Registration? Travel registration is a free service provided by the U.S. Government to U.S. citizens who are traveling to, or living in, a foreign country. Registration allows you to record information about your upcoming trip abroad that the Department of State can use to assist you in case of an emergency. Americans residing abroad can also get routine information from the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.
| Why should I register? Millions of Americans travel abroad every year and encounter no difficulties. However, U.S. embassies and consulates assist nearly 200,000 Americans each year who are victims of crime, accident, or illness, or whose family and friends need to contact them in an emergency. When an emergency happens, or if natural disaster, terrorism, or civil unrest strikes during your foreign travel, the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate can be your source of assistance and information. By registering your trip, you help the embassy or consulate locate you when you might need them the most. Registration is voluntary and costs nothing, but it should be a big part of your travel planning and security. | How can the embassy or consulate assist me while I am abroad? U.S. consular officers assist Americans who encounter serious legal, medical, or financial difficulties. Although consular officers cannot act as your legal counsel or representative, they can provide the names of local attorneys and doctors, provide loans to destitute Americans, and provide information about dangerous conditions affecting your overseas travel or residence. Consular officers also perform non-emergency services, helping Americans with absentee voting, selective service registration, receiving federal benefits, and filing U.S. tax forms. Consular officers can notarize documents, issue passports, and register American children born abroad. Most embassies and consulates have web sites with more information.
Registration through this website is NOT considered proof of U.S. citizenship. If you apply for any American citizen services from the embassy or consulate while abroad, you will be asked by the consular staff to provide proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a U.S. passport or American birth certificate. | How will my information be used? The Department of State and its overseas embassies and consulates request this information only to inform and assist Americans traveling or residing in foreign countries. All personal information you provide is secure and protected by the Privacy Act of 1974. Your personal data will remain in active files for twelve months after the completion of your last trip, your last registration activity, or your departure date from your foreign country of residence. At that time you will receive an e-mail notifying you that your registration data records, log-on, and password will be automatically deleted after three months unless you take steps keep your registration active. No data from the IBRS system will be archived. Indefinite registrations of long-term overseas residents will remain in the file indefinitely unless edited or deleted by the registrant. | |
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Registration and Privacy |
The U.S. Department of State is committed to ensuring that any personal information received
by our overseas embassies and consulates pursuant to the registration process, whether in
person or otherwise, is safeguarded against unauthorized disclosure. The data that you
provided the U.S. Department of State is subject to the provisions of the
Privacy Act
(5 USC 552a). This means that the U.S. Department of State will not disclose the
information you provide us in your registration application to any third parties unless
you have given us written authorization to do so, or unless the disclosure is otherwise
permitted by the Privacy Act.
AUTHORITY: 22 U.S.C. 2715 and 22 U.S.C. 4802(b).
PURPOSE: To notify U.S. citizens in the event of a disaster, emergency or other crisis, and for
evacuation coordination, the information solicited on this form may be made available as a routine
use to appropriate agencies whether federal, state, local, or foreign, to assist the Department
in the evacuation or provision of emergency service to U.S. citizens, or for law enforcement purposes.
The information is also made available to private U.S. citizens, known as wardens, designated by
U.S. embassies to assist in communicating with the American community in an emergency.
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