Nothing can put a damper on your international trip than having your passport stolen abroad. That damper, however, can be lifted in a jiffy with help from Swift Expedited Passport and Visa Services. You’ll need to replace your stolen passport before you head back to the United States, and these tips from the Bureau of Consular Affairs (BCA) tell you how.
Seek out the nearest US embassy or consulate
This agency will help you initiate the passport replacement process and provide additional assistance if you’ve been the victim of a serious crime. You can find US embassies in various countries through the BCA embassy search page. Call the one nearest your location and ask for the Consular Section to report your passport stolen abroad.
Gather required documents
The embassy rep will give you a head’s up on where you can get a photo for your replacement passport, which you typically have to bring to the embassy along with a batch of other documents. These include:
- Passport photo
- Driver’s license or other form of identification
- Proof of US citizenship, such as a birth certificate or copy of your missing passport
- Airline tickets, train tickets and other travel itinerary
Two more documents you can fill out at the embassy are also required:
- DS-11 Application for Passport
- DS-64 Statement Regarding a Lost or Stolen Passport
Filing a police report is optional, but it can help provide further evidence of your passport stolen abroad.
Processing Method
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You can hand over the documentation to the embassy for processing, where processing times may vary. Embassies and consulates are closed on weekends and holidays, only attending to after-hours matters if they are life-or-death emergencies.
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Take Precautions Moving Forward
Once your replacement passport is in your hands, make sure you make two copies of it for your records. Leave one copy at home when traveling abroad, and take the second copy with you. Your passport copies can work as backup if your passport is ever again stolen or lost, serving as identification and proof of US citizenship while making your passport easier to replace.
Before you Go
Before you head off on any international trip, make sure you save a copy of your passport, drivers license and passport photo to a cloud storage account. That way, you can easily access it anywhere with wifi.
You can always contact us with any questions or for more information before, after or even during your travels. We’re always eager and happy to help!
