Passports and Visas

Passports

If your student’s study abroad program takes them outside the US they will need a valid passport. They should apply for a passport immediately upon acceptance to a program because it can take six to eight weeks for standard processing and most passport acceptance facilities require appointments. For more information and links to passport application and renewal forms, please see the Passports page under the Accepted Students section of this website.

Visas

In many countries, students are required to obtain a visa in order to study for a summer, semester, or year. Obtaining a visa can take several weeks to obtain so your student needs to start the process early.

While the Purchase College Office for Global Education (OGE) is generally able to provide some guidance in getting a visa, it is each student’s responsibility to determine visa and immigration requirements for all countries they plan to visit while abroad; this includes countries that they plan to visit before or after their study abroad program.

All travelers, regardless of citizenship, should consult the embassy or consulate of the countries you will visit to learn their document requirements. For more information and links to consulate webpages and other important State Department sites, please see the Visas page under the Accepted Students section of this website.