New Entry Stamp for Passports
Posted Apr 01, 2005
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The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it has begun issuing a new entry stamp as of March 1, 2005. The new stamp was begun on the second anniversary of the abolition of the Legacy Immigration and Naturalization Service. It designates that the issuing agency is the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
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The new stamp is red and blue instead of the old color, which was a dark orange color. The new two-color system was designed to reduce possibilities of fraud, as it is more difficult to replicate.
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There is no indication that anyone who entered the United States prior to March 1, 2005, will need to acquire a new stamp. The new stamp will still continue to serve as proof of lawful admission and a person entering the U.S. will have the status and the authorized period of stay noted upon admission. This entry stamp, issued by the CBP at the time of one's entry to the U.S., is not to be confused with the visa in the passport issued by the U.S. consulate abroad, since consulates are part of the U.S. Department of State (DOS). Although the visa issued by the DOS is no longer a stamp, but rather a more secure, machine-readable document, many people still refer to it as a visa stamp, reminiscent of the days when it was a stamp in the passport.