Information for Travelers
Consulate General of the United States of America
American Citizens Services Unit
78, Bhulabhai Desai Road
Mumbai 400 026, India
Telephone: 91 22 2363 361
Facsimile: 91 22 2367 7026
E-mail: mumbaiacs@state.gov
Website: http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov
American Consulate General Newsletter for American Citizens – Volume 3: June, 2006
Table of Contents
2006 Federal Elections
Monsoon Preparations
Avian Influenza Update
Consular Information Sheet for India
Income Tax Changes for Expatriates
Precautions to Be Taken During Demonstrations
FBI Fights Cyber Crime
Kids’ Corner
Useful Websites and Email Addresses
ACS Unit Location & Hours (including upcoming holiday schedule)
Policy Changes
1. 2006 Federal Elections.
Now is the time to request your absentee ballot for the 2006 U.S. Federal Elections scheduled for Tuesday, November 7, 2006. Every seat in the U.S. House of Representatives will be at stake, as well as one-third of the seats in the U.S. Senate. There are many important state and local races as well. Here are some handy questions and answers to help you to vote this year:
Q1. How do I request an absentee ballot?
A1. You can fill in a form called the Federal Post-Card Application, which is available at the Consulate General’s American Citizens Services Unit, or can be easily downloaded at www.fvap.gov (click on "Forms"). You must mail it to the local election official in for your U.S. voting address. That information is also available at www.fvap.gov. The Consulate’s American Citizens Services Unit has a book that lists voting procedures and addresses for every voting jurisdiction. Please call us or stop by, and we can help make sure your request for a ballot is prepared and sent properly. Another handy tool appears at www.overseasvotersfoundation.org which automatically prepares your ballot request and provides an address based on information you enter.
Q2. What if I am not registered?
A2. Your request for an absentee ballot in most cases also constitutes a request to be registered to vote.
Q3. What if I don’t have a U.S. address?
A3. If you don’t have a permanent U.S. address, you may still vote using the last address where you resided in the United States.
Q4. If I voted in 2004, won’t I automatically receive an absentee ballot?
A4. You should, but there are 3,000 different voting jurisdictions in the United States and nobody’s perfect. It doesn’t hurt to send in an absentee ballot request. Better safe than sorry!
Q5. Do I have to mail the ballot request myself?
A5. Yes. Although some diplomatic posts are able to mail ballots on behalf of American citizens, the Consulate General in Mumbai does not have the staff to provide this service. We appreciate your understanding about this and hope it will not discourage you from sending in your vote.
Make sure your vote counts. Do not procrastinate. Order your absentee ballot today!
2. Monsoon Preparations
Last summer’s monsoon season was one of the most damaging ever experienced in Mumbai. The rainfall on July 26, 2005, was the eighth highest recorded anywhere in a 24-hour period and broke the previous record for Mumbai going back many decades. Several parts of the city were paralyzed by the ensuing floods.
As monsoon season approaches this year, now is a great time to make sure you’re prepared. Please make sure you have adequate supplies of food and water on hand in the event of large-scale flooding. In addition, we recommend you have flashlights with batteries or candles positioned around your apartment. You should also try to develop alternative communications systems such as e-mail or two-way radios if mobile and traditional telephone services are disrupted by a storm.
Should flooding occur you should avoid locations where you might be trapped or where you could be injured from collapsing structures or power lines. We additionally recommend avoiding crowded areas where rumors or panic could lead to a stampede. Please remember that contaminated floodwaters in Mumbai can transmit diseases such as giardia and leptospirosis, so you should attempt as much as possible to stay out of them.
3. Avian Influenza Update
India experienced three outbreaks of avian influenza in poultry in February and March of this year. The outbreaks occurred in rural areas of the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. In each case, the Government of India ordered the culling of tens of thousands of birds. The government has reported that the H5N1 avian influenza virus was contained in each of those outbreaks, and that no other outbreaks have been reported. There have been no reports of any human cases of the H5N1 virus in India so far. To keep abreast of this changing situation, you are encouraged to periodically check the Consulate General’s website at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/security_travel_warnings.html and click on the "Avian Influenza" link. If necessary, we will be sending e-mail updates regarding avian influenza. The website contains a series of questions and answers that can help you and your family prepare for a possible influenza pandemic.
4. Consular Information Sheet for India
The State Department recently updated the Consular Information Sheet for India. The Consular Information Sheet provides the U.S. Government’s analysis of important information for travelers to India, including visa information, security, health, crime, etc. You are encouraged to consult the Consular Information Sheet and to share it with your family or friends who plan to visit India to ensure that you take common-sense precautions when traveling around the country.
The Country Specific Information for India is available on the Consulate website at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/information_for_travelers.html. Consular Information Sheets for every country in the world are available on the U.S. State Department’s travel website at http://travel.state.gov.
5. Income Tax Changes for Expatriates
Congress recently enacted important tax legislation. Although most attention was paid to the extension of certain previously-enacted tax cuts that were scheduled to expire, additional changes were included in the legislation of interest to Americans living and working overseas. For example, the amount of earned income that can be excluded by most Americans working overseas was increased. However, favorable treatment of certain other types of compensation provided to expatriates, such as housing provided by an employer, was restricted. These tax changes are retroactive to January 1 of this year. Interesting articles on these tax changes have appeared in major newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal and the International Herald Tribune. See, for example, http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/26/news/ataxes.php.
6. Precautions to be Taken During Demonstrations
The Consulate General’s Regional Security Office wishes to remind American citizens that demonstrations in India often occur spontaneously and can escalate with little warning, thus posing safety risks to bystanders as well as participants. American citizens should monitor news reports regarding the location of protests and modify movements accordingly. Please report violent disturbances to the Regional Security Office or the American Citizens Services Unit immediately so that warnings can be issued if appropriate. Both offices can be reached through the Consulate operator at (022) 2363-3611. Please dial "0" to speak to the operator.
Demonstrations that occur in Mumbai are usually restricted to areas specified by the police. Azad Maidan is the officially allocated place for all approved demonstrations. Demonstrations can pop up anyplace without any prior approval, however. August Kranti Maidan near Grant Road Railway Station is also sometimes used for demonstrations. Railway stations like CST (Victoria Terminus) and Churchgate are often preferred during evenings as many people returning home travel through these stations.
An advisory will be issued by the Consulate if information is received that indicates American interests are being specifically targeted.
American citizens should take the following precautions:
- Be alert, cautious, and prepared for demonstrations to suddenly occur.
- If caught up in a demonstration, take the quickest route that leads away from the crowd.
- Report the location of violent demonstrations to the Consulate’s Regional Security Office or the American Citizens Services unit as soon as possible.
7. FBI Fights Cyber Crime
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a reporting and referral system for Internet crime complaints from people in the United States and around the world. Through an online complaint form and a team of agents and analysts, IC3 serves the public and U.S. and international law enforcement agencies investigating Internet crime. Internet crime, also called cyber crime, is any illegal activity arising from one or more Internet components such as Web sites, chat rooms, or e-mail. Cyber crime can include everything from non-delivery of goods or services and computer intrusions (hacking) to intellectual property rights abuses, economic espionage (theft of trade secrets), online extortion, international money laundering, identity theft, and a growing list of other Internet-facilitated offenses.
Today at the IC3 office in Fairmont, West Virginia, six federal agents and approximately 40 analysts from industry and academia receive Internet-related criminal complaints from the public, then research, develop, and refer the complaints to federal, state, local, and international law enforcement or regulatory agencies and multi-agency task forces for investigation. Through an IC3 Web site (www.ic3.gov), people from all over the world can file complaints about Internet crime. IC3 sometimes helps law enforcement agencies by researching and building the initial case.
A growing group of international agencies are involved in fighting cyber crime. The IC3 works with law enforcement officials in many countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom. IC3 representatives also attend periodic meetings of the G8 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the United Kingdom) Subgroup on High-Tech Crime, part of which works to combat cyber crime and enhance cyber investigations.
The IC3 project is a constantly evolving work in progress. Along the way, IC3 agents and analysts revisit what is working and what is not working, and constantly seek out experts and sources of intelligence to get smarter about cyber crime and learn how to more effectively fight it.
8. Kids Corner
July 4th is Independence Day in the United States and celebrates the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. This document transformed the thirteen British colonies into the United States of America, although it took the American Revolutionary War to ensure that the new nation would survive.
The Declaration of Independence was written by Thomas Jefferson, who later became Secretary of State and then the third President of the United States. Another famous signer of the Declaration was the second American President John Adams who said the day “…ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more. “
Independence Day, as the only holiday celebrating the United States as a nation, is a national holiday marked by patriotic displays. Many politicians make it a point on this day to appear at a public event to praise the nation's heritage, society and people. Families often mark the Fourth with a picnic or barbecue and often gather with family relatives, taking advantage of the longer weekend or day off from work. Parades are often held the morning of the Fourth, afternoon baseball games are not uncommon, and the evening is usually marked by public displays of fireworks.
One colorful annual Independence Day event is the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, which supposedly started on July 4, 1916, as a way to settle a dispute among four immigrants as to who was the most patriotic.
The town of Bristol, Rhode Island, is noted for having the oldest continuous Independence Day celebration in the United States.
Minor League baseball and Major League baseball games are also played on Independence Day. Since 1959, NASCAR has held the Pepsi Firecracker 400 auto race on July 4th or the Saturday of the July 4th weekend.
Despite the genesis of Independence Day, it is largely uncommon for Americans to express anti-British sentiment on the day or to view it as a celebration of anti-colonialism. Indeed, most Americans today consider the United Kingdom their greatest ally. Rather, contemporary Americans generally perceive the holiday as a celebration of the U.S.A. itself, rather than specifically as an opportunity to commemorate the end of British rule in the 18th century.
Source: www.wikipedia.com
9. Useful Websites and Addresses
Nonimmigrant visa inquiries – mumbainiv@state.gov
Immigrant visa inquiries – mumbaiiv@state.gov
American Citizens Services inquiries – mumbaiacs@state.gov
U.S. Consulate General Mumbai website - http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov
State Department employment opportunities - www.careers.state.gov
Travel advisories - http://travel.state.gov
Internal Revenue Service (for tax forms and information) - www.irs.gov
Department of Motor Vehicles (for driver’s license renewal information) - www.dmv.org
Social Security Administration - www.ssa.gov
U. S. Customs - www.customs.ustreas.gov
Indian Customs - www.cbec.gov.in
Indian Immigration (Foreigners Regional Registration Office) - www.immigrationindia.nic.in or www.mha.nic.in
Mumbai Police - www.mumbaipolice.com
Medicare - http://www.medicare.gov
10. ACS Location & Hours and Upcoming Holidays
Our hours: The American Citizens Services Unit is open to the public from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. We are available outside of these hours for emergency services. To contact us, call (022) 2363-3611, ext. 4306. If you are calling outside of regular business hours please press “0” for the Consulate operator. You can also e-mail us at MumbaiACS@state.gov.
Upcoming Indian and American holidays on which the Consulate will be closed are July 4 (Independence Day), August 15 (Indian Independence Day), and September 4 (Labor Day). The Consulate is always available for emergency services for American citizens.
If you believe you may have missed a recent security update sent to American citizens in India, all recent updates issued by the Consulate are available on the Consulate website at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/warden_information.html
11. Policy Changes
We now offer courier pass-back service for new passports. If you would like us to send your new passport by courier, you may purchase a pre-paid courier envelope from VFS for Rs. 141 and deposit it with your passport application. For more information on how to apply for a passport, please visit our website at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/uspassports2.html. VFS offices are located in the following places:
VFS Mumbai
Tirupati Apartments
Bhulabhai Desai Road
Opposite Mahalkshmi Temple
Mumbai 400026
VFS Ahmedabad
Gujarat Chambers Building
Shri Ambika Mills
Ashram Road
VFS Pune
106 Sohrab Hall 1st Floor
Sassoon Road
Behind Pune Station Junction
You may also visit the VFS website at https://www.vfs-usa.co.in/Home.aspx.
If you would like to continue to be registered with our office to receive important security information but you prefer not to receive these informational newsletters, please reply to this e-mail and we will delete your address from this mailing list.
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