Embassy of the United States Kolonia, Micronesia

U.S. Embassy Consular Officer Charles Thomas is currently visiting Kosrae until October 6.

Thomas will accept new and renewal U.S. Passport applications. Additionally he will assist with processing of applications for extra pages in current U.S. Passports, and Consular Report of Birth Abroad, as well as provide other documentary services. He can also answer general questions about U.S. Citizen Services overseas.

Thomas will provide consular services for American Citizens from 9:00am until 12:00pm at the Kosrae Nautilus Resort on Thursday, October 4. If you have any questions or are unable to come at the scheduled time, please contact the U.S. Embassy in advance at 320-2187 or by email at KoloniaACS@state.gov to make other arrangements.

Visa Processing Fees to Change on April 13, 2012 Effective April 13, 2012, the Department of State will adjust visa processing fees. The fees for most nonimmigrant visa applications and Border Crossing Cards will increase, while all immigrant visa processing fees will decrease.

The Department is required to recover, as far as possible, the cost of processing visas through the collection of application fees. For a number of reasons, the current fees no longer cover the actual cost of processing nonimmigrant visas. The nonimmigrant visa fee increase will support the addition and expansion of overseas facilities, as well as additional staffing required to meet increased visa demand.

Although most categories of nonimmigrant visa processing fees will increase, the fee for E visas (treaty-traders and treaty-investors) and K visas (for fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens) will decrease.

Because of a reallocation of costs associated with immigrant visas, all categories of immigrant visa processing fees will decrease.

The proposed fees were published in the Federal Register today, and will take effect in 15 days. To view the interim final rule, visit www.regulations.gov. Comments will be accepted until 60 days after publication. At that time, the Department will consider the public comments, and the published final rule will include the Department’s response to any comments received.

Fee information may also be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs website, travel.state.gov, and on the websites of U.S. embassies and consulates.

Beginning January 15, 2012, Russian citizens whose purpose of travel meets specific criteria are eligible to be paroled into Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) without a visa. Please consult the following bulletin for further information.

State Department Issues Worldwide Warning. Following the foiled Iran-supported bombing plot, the AP (10/12, Lee) reports, "The State Department is warning Americans around the world of the potential for terrorist attacks against US interests following the exposure of an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States. In a new worldwide travel alert issued late Tuesday, the department said the foiled scheme could be a sign that Iran has adopted a 'more aggressive focus' on terrorist activity. It said Iranian-sponsored attacks could include strikes in the United States, where the alleged plot against the Saudi envoy was supposed to have taken place, as well as other countries."

The Department of State has issued an updated Worldwide Caution. U.S. Embassy Kolonia encourages all travelers to take a moment to familiarize themselves with its content.

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