# Does the US Secretary of State of the US use a passport? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 18, 2013, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543 "2013-08-18T06:10:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ezgranet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/82dd89/32.png) [@ezgranet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ezgranet)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/1 "2013-08-18T06:10:37Z")
I recently learned that in the UK, the Queen does not have a passport when she travels abroad, as the message in the passport states that the queen asks the bearer to pass through customs, so it would be redundant for the Queen to bear a passport. (source below) In the US passport, the Secretary of State requests that the bearer be allowed to pass through. Given that in this situation, the Sec. State is analogous to the Queen and the passport would be redundant, does the Secretary of State (currently John Kerry) carry a passport when he travels abroad? If anyone knows of other examples from around the world of people mentioned in passport messages who don’t use passports for a similar reason, I would be interested to know. (I’m not talking about refugees, world passport holders, etc. I’m interested in people in positions of power who don’t use passports) [http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchAndCommonwealth/Queen%20and%20Commonwealth%20Visits/Queenandpassport.aspx](http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchAndCommonwealth/Queen%20and%20Commonwealth%20Visits/Queenandpassport.aspx) ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/2 "2013-08-18T06:58:26Z")
I very much doubt that any formal inter-governments visits require passports. Those traveling would have diplomatic status that out trumps passports. Can you imagine: “Mr Obama, is that Barack? What is your purpose in visiting the UK today; how long will you stay; do you intend to engage in paid work while you are here; may I see your return ticket and may I check your financial status to ensure you have funds available for your visit.” A few generations ago, passports were not required- a suitable letter would have sufficed, and maybe not even that. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/3 "2013-08-18T07:31:27Z")
> [@Pjen](#): > > I very much doubt that any formal inter-governments visits require passports. Those traveling would have diplomatic status that out trumps passports. > > Can you imagine: “Mr Obama, is that Barack? What is your purpose in visiting the UK today; how long will you stay; do you intend to engage in paid work while you are here; may I see your return ticket and may I check your financial status to ensure you have funds available for your visit.” It may not _require_ a passport (the Queen [gets around](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17826107) just fine without one\*), but the president does have a diplomatic passport. There’s a video about it [here.](http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2010/08/12/west-wing-week-mailbag-day-summer-edition) It shows a few of the stamps, and one was from when he went to the UK for the G20 summit in 2009. There’s a page that says “the bearer is the President of the United States.” \*ETA: Actually, I think there _was_ once an officious customs person, I think in Kentucky, who was incredulous about her lack of a passport. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/4 "2013-08-18T07:44:25Z")
The wording on the passport is addressed to the customs official who will view the passport and let the person into the other country. I love the “requests and requires” wording! From [this wiki page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Britannic_Majesty): > [@](#): > > Britannic Majesty is famously used in all British Passports, where the following sentence is used: > > ``` > Her Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State Requests and requires in the Name of Her Majesty all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary. > > ``` ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/5 "2013-08-18T07:50:10Z")
> [@ezgranet](#): > > In the US passport, the Secretary of State requests that the bearer be allowed to pass through. Given that in this situation, the Sec. State is analogous to the Queen and the passport would be redundant, does the Secretary of State (currently John Kerry) carry a passport when he travels abroad? They’re not totally analogous, though. John Kerry is basically an employee of the United States, not its sovereign. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/6 "2013-08-18T11:18:35Z")
Heads of state and other high-ranking officials actually do have passports, but they probably don’t have to wait in line to be interviewed by customs or immigration officials. That part is being taken care of by their “people”. But I remember the case of a prominent German member of parliament a couple of years ago who was detained by US officials for an hour or so when he entered the United States (as far as I recall he used a diplomatic passport). ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/7 "2013-08-18T12:57:55Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > The wording on the passport is addressed to the customs official who will view the passport and let the person into the other country. I love the “requests and requires” wording! > > From [this wiki page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Britannic_Majesty): And the important thing to note is that the boilerplate in the British passport, just like the US passport, is written as a request from the Secretary of State, not the Queen herself. Our Secretary of State (I’m assuming they’re referring to our Home Secretary here. Or would it be our Foreign Secretary? It isn’t specified) uses a passport, but the Queen does not, because she effectively \*is \*the State. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/8 "2013-08-18T13:36:22Z")
It would be the (UK) Secretary of State for Foreign Affaors who is the equivalent to the US Secretary of State. But rather more importantly, it is whoever is HM’s Foreign Secretary, whatever party holds the majority in Commons, who is doing the asking. Though politically Tory or Labour, he (she) is formally acting as the Queen’s Man. In contrast, sovereignty in the US is vested in the people of the 50 states, who have formed an indissoluble union. The US President, Chief Justice, and Secretary of State have certain formal duties embodied in them as representatives of the People. Different route to the same general result. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/9 "2013-08-18T14:43:14Z")
Secstate absolutely has a passport. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/10 "2013-08-18T16:07:21Z")
> [@](#): > > The president of the United States, his immediate family, certain top officials, and diplomatic personnel are issued diplomatic passports, which have a black cover and for which the bearer doesn’t have to pay a passport fee. > > – snip – > > The United States issues three types of passports. There are currently about 44 million holders of the familiar, blue tourist passport (a few thousand people have green passports issued during the bicentennial of the U.S. Consular Service). About 400,000 have a maroon-covered “official” passport. These are issued to people not in the diplomatic corps who are going abroad in the service of the U.S. government–a large percentage of holders of official passports are active-duty military and their families. About 80,000 Americans have diplomatic passports. [Does the President Have a Passport?](http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2001/06/does_the_president_have_a_passport.html) ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2013, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-us-secretary-of-state-of-the-us-use-a-passport/666543/11 "2013-08-18T19:22:15Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > It may not _require_ a passport (the Queen [gets around](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17826107) just fine without one\*), but the president does have a diplomatic passport. There’s a video about it [here.](http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2010/08/12/west-wing-week-mailbag-day-summer-edition) It shows a few of the stamps, and one was from when he went to the UK for the G20 summit in 2009. > > There’s a page that says “the bearer is the President of the United States.” That’s pretty cool. Does it work like bearer paper, so that if he loses it whoever finds and possesses it is the President of the United States? 😃