As of August 19, 2003, the National Passport Information Center (NPIC), the Department s single, centralized public contact center for U.S. passport information, will move from 1-900 fee-for-service to toll-free service. This change is the result of a new contract with AT&T that will greatly expand the public s access to passport information.

The new, general telephone number will be 1-877-4USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778). For TDD/TTY users, the number will be 1-888-874-7793. With this change, live operator service will also be expanded. Live operators will be available on weekdays from 8:00am to 8:00pm, Eastern Time. Twenty-four hour, 7-day access to automated information will continue to be available. Callers to the previous, fee-for-service 1-900 number will, at no charge, be directed to the new number.

Another significant improvement will be the addition of e-mail access to the National Passport Information Center at npic@state.gov. A response will be sent to e-mail inquiries within 24-hours during normal business days. This service expansion complements the vast amount of passport and other international travel information readily available on the Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs website, http://travel.state.gov. Facsimile communication options will be added later.