Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative Improvement Act of 2018

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative Improvement Act of 2018

This bill establishes certain standards for U.S. passport applications.

The Department of State shall adjudicate U.S. passport applications in an individualized, evidence-based manner based on an assessment of individual circumstances and evidence. An applicant's race, ethnicity, or ancestry may not be considered in such adjudicatory process.

The bill requires that:

• an applicant establish U.S. citizenship or nationality by a preponderance of the evidence, and
• a determination that an applicant has not met such evidentiary burden state in writing the reasons for the determination and be provided to the applicant in a timely manner.

A birth certificate signed by a person authorized under state law to sign such a document, or a previously-issued U.S. passport, shall constitute prima facie evidence of U.S. citizenship or nationality and, absent individualized evidence that a birth did not take place in the United States, shall satisfy the preponderance of the evidence standard.