Visa & Passport Services: Why Are the Passport Laws So Strict? TexasTower

All of the new laws, rules and regulations concerning travel, or more specifically travel requiring a passport, are being put in place to help keep our nation more safe and secure. Sure, it is a real hassle and very time consuming, but we do need to remember that in the long run it benefits us.

Back in 2005 the GAO (Government Accountability Office) concluded that the State Department had not been regularly checking passport applications against lists of known criminals and suspected terrorists. The director of International Affairs and Trade cited a number of challenges to the State Department's passport fraud detection effort, including information sharing deficiencies, insufficient training, staffing and investigative resources. The most specific reason listed was that the State Department did not receive information on citizens listed in the terrorist screening center database, which is the government's consolidated terrorist watch list. Nor did the state department routinely obtain information from the FBI on the names of wanted individuals. Meaning that many of those individuals were not listed on the State Departments consular lookout or on any other database so it was easier for them to obtain passports and travel internationally without the knowledge of the appropriate authorities.

Naturally, many changes had to be made and stricter laws needed to be put in place. Along with this came many changes on many different levels and while it is taxing and time consuming it helps a little if you will remember that all of this is being done so that all of us, including our children, can live in a safer environment.

Labels: birth certificate, birth certificate copy, passport, passport applications, passport renewal, passport services, passports, travel, visa

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