Press Releases
UNITED STATES EMBASSY THE HAGUE
PRESS OFFICE
For Immediate release
October 25, 2006
DUTCH E-PASSPORT MEETS REQUIREMENTS FOR VISA WAIVER PROGRAM TRAVEL
Visa Waiver Program travelers with passports issued on or after October 26, 2006, will be
required to carry an e-Passport - which contains a chip containing the bearer’s
biographical information - if they wish to enter the United States visa-free.
Dutch citizens will be able to continue to participate in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP)
after the October 26 deadline because the Dutch government already began producing
e-passports on August 26, 2006. The Dutch e-passport is fully compatible with the inspections systems at U.S. ports of entry.
Travelers with passports issued - from October 26, 2005, up to and including October 25, 2006 may use the Visa
Waiver Program as long as the passport is BOTH machine-readable AND contains a
digital photograph.
- before October 26, 2005 may use the Visa Waiver Program if the passport is
machine-readable. It does NOT have to contain a digital photograph.
Each traveler – babies and older children too – needs to have his or her own passport to travel without a visa. Children who are included in a parent’s passport must get a visa.
More information on travel to the United States is available on the U.S. Mission to the Netherlands’s website at http://netherlands.usembassy.gov/.
Additional information on passport requirements under the VWP can also be found at The Department of State website (http://www.travel.state.gov/) and The Department of Homeland Security website (www.cbp.gov).
Astrid Bharos and Marion Ekpuk
US Embassy The Hague
Visa info: 020 794 0808 (€15/call, payable by credit card only)