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U.S. Worldwide Travel Alerts

TRAVEL ALERTS from State Department of the United States   Travelers Cautions and Alerts    For U.S. State Department Travel Alerts worldwide, see:  https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel.html

Passport On-Line Renewal Coming

Americans will be able to renew their passports online. See:  U.S. Passport renewal On-Line

REAL ID Required on Drivers License May 7, 2025

New state and Federal Identification requirements are effective May 2025 for all Texas residents.  Beginning May 7, 2025, only state-issued driver's licenses and identification cards that are fully compliant with the REAL ID Act will be accepted for official federal government purposes, such as entering secure federal buildings or boarding domestic flights. Texas began issuing REAL ID compliant cards on October 10, 2016, and these cards are marked with a gold circle with an inset star located in the upper right-hand corner. See details at RealID.  See this list for all 50 U.S. states' requirements.  (https://www.dhs.gov/real-id)

International visitors to Europe and U.K must pre-register before travel starting in 2025.   

ETIAS European Travel Information and Authorisation System

International travelers arriving by air, land or sea visiting the 28 European nation Schengen zone will be required to pre-register before arrival. NOTE: Effective date is subject to change, now estimated to go live in 2nd quarter 2025 See European visa waiver procedure  and www.ETIAS.com

ETIAS FAQ

ETIAS Assessment

ETIAS Requirements

Participating ETIAS Countries

ETIAS Versus The Schengen Visas

EES   European Entrance/Exit Protcols

European Entrance/Exit protocols will be implemented in the near future.   See more: Entry/Exit System (  EES) - Schengen Area Border Control (schengenvisainfo.com)

ETA   United Kingdom - Electronic Travel Authorization)

United Kingdom only.  International visitors to the United Kingdom will be required to apply for the digital authorization online.  It will not be a physical document.  Implementation date is January 8, 2025.  See more at: Apply for an electronic travel authorisation (ETA) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)   or  Electronic Travel Authorization

ALERT:  Avoid the luggage hassle when traveling. Order baggage pick up from your home for seamless delivery to your destination Online for world-wide service.   See: https://app.luggageforward.com/book/castaways-travel

NOTE:  Implementation dates above are not guaranteed and have changed since the first announcements.

 

Americans can now renew their passports online. U.S. Passport renewal On-Line

From the Associate Press (AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans can now renew their passports online, bypassing a cumbersome mail-in paper application process that caused delays.

The State Department announced Wednesday that its online passport renewal system is now fully operational.

“By offering this online alternative to the traditional paper application process, the Department is embracing digital transformation to offer the most efficient and convenient passport renewal experience possible,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

After staffing shortages caused mainly by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in lengthy passport processing delays, the department ramped up hiring and introduced other technological improvements that have reduced wait times by about one-third over last year. It says most applications are now completed in far less than the advertised six weeks to eight weeks and the online renewal system is expected to further reduce that.

The system will allow renewal applicants to skip the current process, which requires them to print out and send paper applications and a check by mail, and submit their documents and payment through a secure website, www.Travel.State.Gov/renewonline.

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