Travel Documents - Passport, Visa, International Driving Permit

There are several different travel documents that are important for American citizens to carry with them when traveling abroad. Each document will be briefly identified below. We will also provide links to more detailed information concerning the requirements for obtaining each type of travel document.

Passport Book with RFID Chip

Passport

A current, valid passport is the most important travel document a United States citizen can possess. It is required to travel by air, land or sea to any foreign country. The new wallet-size passport card is a travel document that can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports-of-entry. You cannot use this document for international air travel.

Visa

An entry visa permits a traveler to arrive at a port-of-entry of a foreign country and request permission to enter. Obtaining a visa does not guarantee entrance into the country you wish to visit. Permission is granted or denied by agents at the port-of-entry. Several types of visas exist such as tourist, business, work, study and resident visas. Visas are issued for a predetermined amount of time. Not all foreign countries require a visa for entrance.

International Driving Permit (IDP)

An International Driving Permit translates information contained on your driver's license into 10 languages so that officials in foreign countries are able to interpret your license. An IDP supplements a valid government-issued license--it does not serve as a replacement for a license. If you are stopped by law enforcement, you will most likely be asked to produce both your IDP and your official driver's license. IDPs are honored in more than 150 countries outside the United States. Only the the American Automobile Association (AAA) and the American Automobile Touring Alliance (AATA), are permitted to sell IDPs only to people who are at least 18 years old and only to those who have a valid driver's license issued by a U.S. state or territory.

Travel Document Authentication

The Department of State, Authentications Office is responsible for signing and issuing certificates under the Seal of the U.S. Department of State (22 CFR, Part 131) providing authentication services to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals on documents that will be used overseas. The authentication fee is $8.00 per document.

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