Yes. In the 1980’s, the Supreme Court ruled that citizenship is a constitutional right that cannot be taken away from a citizen who does not intend to relinquish it. Therefore, such actions as naturalization in a foreign country, employment with a foreign government, and voting in a foreign election do not automatically jeopardize American citizenship.

In general, children under the age of 16 are issued passports valid for five years; those 16 and over are issued passports valid for ten years.

You may renew your passport at any time before or after it expires.

Please see our instructions for renewal. Always check your passport expiration date well before you plan to travel in order to prevent delaying your travel plans.

No. If your passport was issued with full validity (i.e. ten years for adults and five years for children), you must apply for a new passport. If your passport was issued for less than five or ten years and the last page of your passport states that it is extendable, please email TunisACS@state.gov.

Yes. In most cases, your old passport will be cancelled and returned to you with the new one.

No. Under U.S. law, U.S. citizens must be in possession of a valid U.S. passport to enter or leave the United States. This is true even if you hold a passport from another country. If your U.S. passport has been lost or stolen, or if it has expired, you must apply to replace it before traveling to the United States.

No.  Embassies no longer add pages to passports.

Generally, citizens are allowed to carry only one valid passport at a time. In the situation described above, the issuance of a second, limited-validity passport is possible. Please speak with a consular officer. You can contact us using our ACS Navigator or email us at TunisACS@state.gov.

You should contact the appropriate foreign Embassy or Consulate for advice as to how to proceed.

Yes, your passport may be amended to reflect your married name. See more information on what you’ll need to do to correct your passport here.

Yes, almost anybody born in the United States is an American citizen regardless of the nationality or status of the parents. The only exceptions are children of foreign diplomats who have full diplomatic immunity. Anyone else can apply for an American passport by presenting an original birth certificate showing birth in the United States and adequate identity documents.

Most likely. Whether an U.S. citizen can transmit citizenship to a child born overseas depends on several factors : whether both parents are American, whether the child is born in wedlock, when the child is born.

The most common case is a child born to married American and non-American parents. The U.S. citizen parent must have been physically present in the United States for five years prior to the birth of the child. In addition, two of those five years must be after reaching the age of fourteen. For children born before 1986, the U.S. citizen parent must have spent ten years in the United States, five of which after the age of fourteen. The five years must not necessarily be sequential.

If both parents are American, they need only show that one of them has resided in the United States (no time requirement).

An American citizen mother of a child born out of wedlock on or after December 24, 1952 and before June 12, 2017 must prove that she was physically present continuously for one year in the United States or its outlying possessions at any time prior to the child’s birth.

An American citizen mother of a child born out of wedlock on or after June 12, 2017 to a U.S. citizen mother and non-U.S. citizen father must prove five years of residence in the U.S., two of which are after the age of 14, prior to the child’s birth.

An American citizen father of a child born out of wedlock must prove five years of residence in the U.S., two of which are after the age of 14, and must have recognized the child and agreed to the child’s financial support.

Yes. When U.S. citizens cannot transmit citizenship to their children born overseas because they do not have the required physical presence in the United States, they have two options:

• They can apply for the expeditious naturalization of their children, if an American citizen grandparent has enough physical presence in the United States. This procedure must be initiated through the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service. The process can take up to 3 years and the child must go to the United States to be naturalized.  The process must be completed before the child is eighteen.
•  The U.S. citizen parent may file for an immigrant visa for the child. Under the Child Citizenship Act, once the child enters the U.S. on an immigrant visa, the child automatically becomes a U.S. citizen. The child must be under 18 and in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent at the time of entry. Immigrant visas may be applied for through the Embassy in Tunis.

The laws governing the retention of citizenship have been greatly liberalized. No child has to do anything at any age to retain, choose, affirm, or confirm American citizenship.  In the 1980’s, the Supreme Court ruled that citizenship is a Constitutional right which cannot be taken away from a citizen who does not intend to relinquish it.

Review the following checklist to determine your eligibility:

1. I can submit my most recent U.S. passport book with my renewal application. YES / NO

2. I was at least 16 years old when my most recent U.S. passport book was issued. YES / NO

3. I was issued my most recent U.S. passport book less than 15 years ago. YES / NO

4. My most recent U.S. passport book has a validity of 10 years from issuance to expiration. YES / NO

5. The U.S. passport book that I am renewing has not been mutilated, damaged, lost or stolen. YES / NO

6. I currently use the same name as appears on my most recent U.S. passport book, or I have had my name changed by marriage, divorce or court order and can submit proper certified documentation to reflect my name change with my renewal application. YES / NO

7. I currently reside in and/or have a valid mailing address in Tunisia or Libya. YES / NO

If you have answered NO to any of the statements above, you are not eligible to pay your passport renewal fee online. Please review the Passport Renewal page to find information on the available payment options for your passport renewal.

If you have answered YES to all items on the checklist, you are eligible to pay your passport fee online. Please follow this link to submit your payment. In the name fields, please use your current legal name, even if it is different from the name that appears on your prior passport. If you are submitting a payment on behalf of another passport renewal applicant, please enter their name. All fields are required.

Note: You can only use this form to pay for one passport application at a time. Fee payments for multiple renewal applications must be submitted separately.

If your DS-82 renewal is eligible to be paid online, then you may authorize someone else to drop off your DS-82 passport renewal application at the U.S. Embassy in Tunis on your behalf.

Please remember to include a complete application package: your DS-82 signed, your online payment receipt, a copy of your current passport, and any other required documentation with the person dropping off your application.

If you are NOT eligible for online payment, you are not currently eligible to authorize someone else to drop off your application on your behalf at the Embassy.

Note: Drop-off hours are Monday-Thursday from 2:00-3:00 p.m. weekly, except when the Embassy is officially closed.