Please note: American Citizen Service unit is closed to the public on the first Wednesday of each month and certain Ethiopian and American public holidays.
We strongly recommend that you renew your passport early so that you do not need an emergency passport. It takes at least two weeks for full validity passports to arrive in our office from the United States. Please be aware that emergency passport issuance is not guaranteed. By applying for an emergency passport, you risk having to change your travel plans. Therefore, you should only purchase airline tickets after checking that your family’s passports are valid.
Emergency passports are intended for U.S. citizens who need to travel immediately to the United States due to an unexpected incident or for U.S. citizen tourists whose passports were lost or stolen during their travels. Weddings, vacations, school, and pre-planned medical procedures are not emergencies. We can issue an emergency passport only when you bring documentary proof of the emergency and proof of immediate travel (plane tickets) to your appointment.
How to Apply
Please first check our appointments website to see if there is an available passport appointment prior to your date of travel. If appointments are available, please make one through the website. If no appointments are available before you need to travel, please email us at consacs@state.gov with the full names, dates of birth, and telephone numbers of all individuals who will attend your emergency passport appointment. Please put “EMERGENCY” in the subject line to ensure a timely response, state the date of travel, and attach evidence of a paid itinerary ticket. This e-mail box is monitored between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Monday to Friday. You must wait for a reply before arriving to the Embassy. We do not accept walk-ins for emergency appointments. If you are approved for an emergency appointment, you will be receiving an email with the date and time of your appointment. Anyone who arrives more than 30 minutes after their appointment time will be required to make a new appointment.
Processing Times
Emergency passports are available for pickup at 3:00 p.m. on the same day they are approved.
Application Requirements
Application requirements, including fees, for emergency passports are the same as those for full-validity passports, with the addition of documentary proof of your emergency. Please return to the passport renewal page and prepare your application according to the check list.
Replacing a Limited-Validity Passport
We strongly encourage you to exchange your limited-validity emergency passport for a new, full-validity passport as soon as possible. If you do so before the emergency passport expires, you will not be charged another passport application fee.
