22 U.S.C. § 213 — Application for passport; verification by oath of initial passport

This section is a single, undivided rule covering three requirements. First, before anyone can get a passport issued by or under U.S. authority, they must submit a written application. That application must truthfully state every fact that a law, or a rule authorized by law, requires as a prerequisite for issuing a passport. Second, if the applicant has not previously been issued a U.S. passport, the application must be verified — meaning the applicant must swear to it under oath, before someone the Secretary of State has authorized to administer oaths. Third, every passport application made available to potential applicants (Form DS-11) and every passport renewal application made available to current passport holders (Form DS-82) must include a form that the applicant can complete. Completing it means the applicant consents to letting the government disclose information that section 552a of title 5 (commonly known as the Privacy Act of 1974) would otherwise protect, but only if the applicant is later determined to be wrongfully detained by a foreign government. Declining to complete this form does not affect whether a qualified applicant gets a passport, and does not affect diplomatic efforts to secure the release of a wrongfully detained U.S. national from a foreign government or entity.