Technical Problem leads to inability to print Visas, Passports and Travel Documents

The US State Department is investigating the main cause behind technical problems with its overseas passport and visa system.

Questions were raised with regard to the cause of the problems and also, whether it was a hacking attack. For now, the authorities have just said they have been working to rectify the problem and expect that things will sort out very soon.

Passport applications accepted overseas on or after May 26 were affected. The State Department said that the passports for emergency purposes can be issued. The department officials explained that a hardware failure has occurred in its Consular Consolidated Database glitch.

Owing to which, they are not able to print visas, regular passports and other travel documents. The department said that there are chances that those who have submitted online applications for passports and visas on or after June 9 can face delay in processing.

The issue has not effect on domestic passport issuance. The department said, “We cannot bypass the legal requirements necessary to screen visa applicants before we issue visas for travel. As a result, there is a backlog of visas waiting to be processed. We are working as quickly as possible to resolve the issue and to clear the backlog”.

Complete details of the failure are not available for now. Last July, the consular database was withdrawn owing to another technical glitch. But officials said the issue is not linked with the current one. The department is making efforts to identify the problem and correct it as soon as possible.