Pretrial Services Passport Procedures

PASSPORT POLICY & PROCEDURES: (Guide, Volume 8 Part C, Chapter 5 section 535.45.20):
Surrender and Custody of Passports (18 U.S.C. 3142(c)(1)(B)(xiv))


If the court ordered the defendant to surrender the passport to pretrial services, that office becomes the custodian of the document and should maintain the passport pending its use as evidence or until disposition of the charges.

If the defendant is convicted, absent specific directives from the court, the custodian of the passport should return the passport to:

a) the Department of State ( if a United States passport)...along with a copy of the court judgement.
b) the appropriate Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention and Removal Operations (DRO) field office ( if a foreign passport).

The procedures in the Southern District of New York regarding the return of U.S. or foreign passports allows 90 days for counsel to obtain an order from the court, directing pretrial services to return the passport to the defendant or another responsible party. Subsequent to 90 days, the passport will be returned to the appropriate authorities.

If you have any questions regarding the passport procedures or you need to find out if Pretrial Services is still in possession of a passport, please contact the defendant's supervising officer or the main telephone number, 212-805-4100