Thus spake Eric Cordian (emc@wolf359.net) [26/06/07 15:31]: : 1. Why does the Department of State fail to disclose the real documentation : requirements on the passport application? Is it possible that the documentation requested is sufficient for most purposes, but the government decided, in your friend's case, that more documentation was needed? (Is there a 'no-fly' list for passport applicants?) : 2. Can the government refuse to issue a passport to a US citizen, : effectively making them a political prisoner, unable to travel, by demanding : unreasonable documentation, and then filing their passport application in : limbo if they refuse to provide it or it doesn't exist? Can they outright refuse? I don't know. Can they make demands, calling them 'requirements', that are nigh impossible to fulfill, resulting in the effective refusal of a passport? Sure can. : 3. Is there a way to get a passport without being forced to give the : government information that is none of their business? I would be *extremely* surprised if this was possible.

Well, it's interesting to consider how coordinated the Feds are these days. Someone I know recently went to a one-day Passport processing center, where you can take your documentation in the morning, pay a lot of extra $, and get the passport in the evening. You can even do this across state lines. So I'd suggest gathering up the documentation and taking a trip to a busy similar center across state lines and see if they can get a passport. It should be noted that this behavior may not be the result of hyper-fascist feds, but incompetant ones: There's a apparently a huge backlog of applications because of the new laws requiring a passport to travel...everywhere outside the US, so they may be looking to push off as much as they can. (I hear stories of the break rooms and hallways being stacked floor-to-ceiling with applications). As for the lost documentation, it's possible it's actually lost... -TD

From: "Eric Cordian" To: cypherpunks Subject: The REAL Requirements for a US Passport Date: Tue, 26 Jun 2007 12:20:15 -0700

A friend of mine recently applied for a US Passport, having never had one before. On the application form it stated that the requirements for getting a US Passport were to fill out the form, and present it in person to an "acceptance agent" with a certified copy of ones birth certificate, and state ID over 6 months old, and raise your hand and swear to some stuff.

That having been done, my friend was surprised to get a letter from the Feebs a few weeks later, saying that "The Identification You Provided is Not Sufficient for Passport Purposes" and stating that the application would be denied unless he submitted AT LEAST 5 additional documents containing a photo and/or signature and an issue date, "issued over a period of time", as well as identification, and filled out a Feeb-provided form demanding contact information for all his relatives, and contact information for all his employers in the last ten years, as well as a list of all the schools he's attended with dates, and all the places he's resided.

The letter also warned, "Failure to comply with this request will result in a delay for any future requests."

They also kept his birth certificate.

Which raises the following questions.

1. Why does the Department of State fail to disclose the real documentation requirements on the passport application?

2. Can the government refuse to issue a passport to a US citizen, effectively making them a political prisoner, unable to travel, by demanding unreasonable documentation, and then filing their passport application in limbo if they refuse to provide it or it doesn't exist?

3. Is there a way to get a passport without being forced to give the government information that is none of their business?

-- Eric Michael Cordian 0+ O:.T:.O:. Mathematical Munitions Division "Do What Thou Wilt Shall Be The Whole Of The Law"

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