Important Notice – U.S. Embassy Athens, Consular Section and U.S. Consulate Thessaloniki will be operating at reduced capacity September 21-25 – The U.S. Embassy in Athens and its Consular Section, and the U.S. Consulate General in Thessaloniki will be operating at a reduced capacity from Thursday, September 21 to Monday, September 25, 2023, due to an onsite Embassy move. Emergency services for U.S. citizens will continue to be available during this time.
Message to U.S. Citizens: U.S. citizens will not be allowed to use their expired U.S. passport for direct return to the United States after June 30, 2022.
Section 215 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1185) requires all American citizens to use their U.S. passports when entering or leaving the United States.
American citizens may not enter/leave the U.S. on a Greek/foreign passport. This applies to children as well as adults. This regulation also applies to dual national citizens holding Greek and American passports. U.S. citizens traveling from Greece to the United States, and those leaving the United States for Greece must use their U.S. passports. When returning to the European Union (EU), a dual national should enter the European Union with an EU passport.
Renew your passport by mail, if eligible. Send your passport application by mail, if your current passport was issued when you were age 16 or over, was valid for ten years and has not expired more than five years ago. Processing time is approximately 1 month, but could take as long as 6 weeks.
Passport Validity Requirements: Many countries have passport validity requirements. Before traveling we recommend you visit the Department of State website to ensure that your passport is valid for travel to all countries you will visit or transit. Review useful information regarding the latest travel recommendations by the State Department. The U.S. Embassy in Athens website includes additional information regarding the Schengen area requirements here. You may wish to confirm with the airline that your passport validity meets the requirements of all countries on your itinerary.
Currently, the U.S. Embassy in Athens has a long waitlist for Loss of Nationality Services. Unfortunately, we cannot provide a timeframe for when we will resume this service but will update this website as information becomes available.
Important Information Regarding Your Embassy Visit
- Please do not come to the Embassy if you or a family member are sick or if you have been in close contact with anyone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19.
- Arrive at the Kokkali gate entrance 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment. We recommend you bring an umbrella in case it rains or, if you are sensitive to sun in the summer as shade is limited at certain times of the day.
- Bring your forms fully completed online and printed with the required original supporting documentation as noted in the options below. If your forms are not prepared, you will be asked to reschedule.
- There is no photographer available at the U.S. Embassy Athens. We encourage you to bring two U.S. passport sized photos to minimize your time at the Embassy. Please follow all photo requirements. Applications with incorrect photos will not be accepted. Several photo shops near the Embassy offer services and have been used by our clients with good results. We do not endorse any photographer or guarantee their work. A photo booth is available in our waiting area for emergencies. The cost for two photographs is 10 Euros. Please bring the exact amount in Euros only as the photo booth does not give change. It may be difficult for an infant or minor child to be photographed in the booth. We strongly advise that your bring the required photos with you.
- Except for parents of children 17 and under, do not bring family members who do not have appointments.
Renew a Passport - By mail
- Renew an Adult Passport by mail
- Exchange a Limited Validity Passport for Full Validity
- Change of name/correcting information on a passport issued:
Third party attendance at Passport and CRBA appointment interviews
Generally, immediate family members may accompany passport or CRBA applicants to their appointment interviews at a U.S. embassy or consulate, and all minor children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Passport or CRBA applicants also have the option of being accompanied by an attorney at their appointment interview. Attendance by any third party, including an attorney, accompanying an applicant is subject to the following parameters designed to ensure an orderly appointment interview process and to maintain the integrity of the adjudication of the application(s):
o Given space limitations in the consular section, not more than one attendee at a time will be allowed to accompany an applicant (or the applicant’s parent or guardian if the applicant is a minor).
o Attendance by an attorney does not excuse the applicant and/or the minor applicant’s parent or guardian from attending the appointment interview in person.
o The manner in which a passport or CRBA appointment interview is conducted, and the scope and nature of the inquiry, shall at all times be at the discretion of the consular officer, following applicable Departmental guidance.
o It is expected that attorneys will provide their clients with relevant legal advice prior to, rather than at, the appointment interview, and will advise their clients prior to the appointment interview that the client will participate in the appointment interview with minimal assistance.
o Attorneys may not engage in any form of legal argumentation during the appointment interview and before the consular officer.
o Attendees other than a parent or guardian accompanying a minor child may not answer a consular officer’s question on behalf or in lieu of an applicant, nor may they summarize, correct, or attempt to clarify an applicant’s response, or interrupt or interfere with an applicant’s responses to a consular officer’s questions.
o To the extent that an applicant does not understand a question, s/he should seek clarification from the consular officer directly.
o The consular officer has sole discretion to determine the appropriate language(s) for communication with the applicant, based on the facility of both officer and applicant and the manner and form that best facilitate communication between the consular officer and the applicant. Attendees may not demand that communications take place in a particular language solely for the benefit of the attendee. Nor may attendees object to or insist on the participation of an interpreter in the appointment interview, to the qualifications of any interpreter, or to the manner or substance of any translation.
o No attendee may coach or instruct applicants as to how to answer a consular officer’s question.
o Attendees may not object to a consular officer’s question on any ground (including that the attendee regards the question to be inappropriate, irrelevant, or adversarial), or instruct the applicant not to answer a consular officer’s question. Attendees may not interfere in any manner with the consular officer’s ability to conduct all inquiries and fact-finding necessary to exercise his or her responsibilities to adjudicate the application.
o During a passport or CRBA appointment interview, attendees may not discuss or inquire about other applications.
o Attendees may take written notes, but may not otherwise record the appointment interviews.
o Attendees may not engage in any other conduct that materially disrupts the appointment interview. For example, they may not yell at or otherwise attempt to intimidate or abuse a consular officer or staff, and they may not engage in any conduct that threatens U.S. national security or the security of the embassy or its personnel. Attendees must follow all security policies of the Department of State and the U.S. embassy or consulate where the appointment interview takes place.
Attendees may not engage in any conduct that violates this policy and/or otherwise materially disrupts the appointment interview. Failure to observe these parameters will result in a warning to the attendee and, if ignored, the attendee may be asked to leave the appointment interview and/or the premises, as appropriate. It would then be the applicant’s choice whether to continue the appointment interview without the attendee present, subject to the consular officer’s discretion to terminate the appointment interview. The safety and privacy of all applicants awaiting consular services, as well as of consular and embassy personnel, is of paramount consideration.
