Subject: American Community Security Update - October 2003 Welcome to the October newsletter! Here are the topics for this month: -- Security Situation -- Faster U.S. Passport Processing -- Driving in Japan -- California to Allow Absentee Ballots by Fax -- New Passport Requirements For Japanese Waived Until 2004 -- Upcoming Holidays -- Computer Security -- TELL Connoisseurs' Auction at the American Ambassador's Residence -- Unsubscribing --------------------------------------------------------- Security Situation --------------------------------------------------------- The security situation in Japan remains the same with no new threat information other than the September 26, 2003 Worldwide Caution Public Announcement we distributed via this channel (you can always read the most current information at http://travel.state.gov). --------------------------------------------------------- Faster U.S. Passport Processing --------------------------------------------------------- Our recent computer upgrades in Japan allow us to now submit U.S. passport applications to the National Passport Center in the U.S. electronically, which usually cuts the processing time by several days or more. To be on the safe side however, please allow three weeks from the time we accept your application until the time your new passport arrives in your mailbox. Most people can apply for renewal passports by mail; in the Tokyo area please see http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhacs-7130c.html for all the details and downloadable forms. For Americans in other parts of Japan, contact the nearest Consulate at the web sites listed at the end of this message. Remember that many Asian countries, including Indonesia and the Philippines, do not allow Americans to enter with passports with less than six months validity remaining. Check your passport before you travel, as airlines may not let you board, or you may be turned around at Immigration when you arrive at your destination, and sent back to Japan without accomplishing your business or enjoying your hard-earned vacation. --------------------------------------------------------------- Driving in Japan --------------------------------------------------------------- With many new people having arrived in Japan just this summer, we wanted to remind everyone that Americans cannot drive in Japan with only a U.S. drivers license. Persons found driving in Japan without a legal license are subject to fines, arrest and possible deportation. "Residents" are expected to convert to or obtain a Japanese drivers license. Persons using only an international drivers license who are resident in Japan can be subject to fines or arrest. The exact boundary between "resident" and "not resident" is unclear. In practice it seems to involve more than simply visa status or length of stay in Japan and is determined by the police. We have information on our web site about this, and details on how to convert to a Japanese license (Americans must take a driving test), as well as links to some for-profit services that may make the process easier. You can learn more on our web site at http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhacs-drive.html You cannot obtain an International Driving Permit at the Embassy or at our Consulates. Find out how to apply for one at http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhacs-drive.html#IDP As for your U.S. license, you cannot renew your U.S. license at the Embassy or at our Consulates. Renewal by mail is available from some states; find out more for your state at http://www.dmv.org --------------------------------------------------------------- California to Allow Absentee Ballots by Fax --------------------------------------------------------------- Due to the short time frame for the October 7th Statewide Special Election, the California Secretary of State's Office has decided to allow faxed ballots from Citizens outside the United States who are covered by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) who are legal residents of California. The order is effective for the October 7th Statewide Special Election only. It requires that the voter be informed of and agree to waive his or her right to a secret ballot. All faxed ballots must be received by county elections officials by the close of the polls (8:00 p.m.) on Election Day. Citizens may receive the blank ballot via fax and return the voted ballot by fax. Blank ballots at not available from the Embassy or our Consulates and cannot be filed at or FAXed from our offices. Citizens of California who desire to receive their absentee ballot by fax should provide their county election official with their complete commercial or DSN (military) fax number, including country codes necessary when dialing from the U.S. This can be done by faxing a Federal Post Card Application as a request using the Federal Voting Assistance Program's Electronic Transmission Service numbers listed below. Citizens should be aware that by faxing the ballot they are waiving the right to secrecy of their vote for this election and must sign a waiver that will be included in the faxed ballot materials. A citizen returning the voted ballot by fax which was either received by mail or by fax should refer to Appendix C of the 2002-2003 Voting Assistance Guide (located at http://www.fvap.gov/vag/pdfvag/appendix_c.pdf) for instructions and a cover sheet (which includes a secrecy waiver) for use when transmitting the voted ballot by fax. Citizens should be sure to fax the entire ballot including any oath or signature required on the ballot-mailing envelope. The FVAP Toll-Free Fax Number for Japan is 00531-1-20833. Voters must provide a return transmission fax number (including international prefixes) on all documents sent via fax. Refer also to the August 21, 2003 FVAP News Release: "STATEWIDE SPECIAL ELECTION IN CALIFORNIA ON OCTOBER 7, 2003" located at http://www.fvap.gov/press/2003/06-2003.html. For assistance, you may contact an FVAP staff member through the DoD Voting Information Center (VIC). The VIC also provides recorded messages from candidates, as well as other information concerning elections, 24 hours a day. Citizens may reach the VIC toll-free from 59 countries using the toll-free numbers listed on the FVAP website, http://www.fvap.gov/. In the U.S. call 1-800-438-VOTE (8683) or local (703) 588-1343 or use DSN (military) 425-1343. Questions regarding the above may also be referred to the Director, Federal Voting Assistance Program, Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, 1155 Defense Pentagon, Washington DC 20301-1155. Additionally, the FVAP can be reached via e-mail at vote@fvap.ncr.gov and on the World Wide Web at http://www.fvap.gov/. California citizens seeking more information about the October 7, 2003 Statewide Special Election and the questions and candidates listed on the ballot may visit the California Secretary of State's voter information website at http://www.MyVoteCounts.org. --------------------------------------------------------------- Other Voting News --------------------------------------------------------------- The following States have recently changed voting laws: Arizona Voters may now submit their Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) ballot request via fax, may receive their blank ballot via fax, and return the completed ballot via fax. For more information, call 703-693-5527. Nevada Nevada now accepts the on-line version of the FPCA ballot request. This on-line form of the ballot request is available at www.fvap.go For more information, call 703-693-5527. Oklahoma Voters may now submit their Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) ballot request via fax, may receive their blank ballot via fax, and return the completed ballot via fax. For more information, call 703-693-5527. Currently, the only states or territories that do not accept the On-line Federal Postcard Application (OFPCA) are American Samoa, Guam, Louisiana and Ohio. The OFPCA is an alternative to the cardstock Federal Post Card Application (FPCA). Visit the FVAP website at http://www.fvap.gov for instructions on completing the OFPCA. The form is in Adobe Acrobat format and can be filled in on-line, printed out, signed, dated, placed in an envelope with proper postage and then mailed to the appropriate Local Election Official. Note that you can't register or vote online; you still must print out the OFPCA, sign it, and mail/fax it in. --------------------------------------------------------------- New Machine-Readable Passport Requirements Waived Until October 26, 2004 --------------------------------------------------------------- This reminder does not affect American Citizens, but will affect many of your foreign colleagues and friends, so we are passing it on to you. The Secretary of State has granted a postponement until October 26, 2004, as the date by which Visa Waiver Program travelers from 21 countries must present a machine-readable passport at a U.S. port of entry to be admitted to the country without a visa. The countries for which the postponement has been granted are: Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Five other eligible countries did not request a postponement of the effective date, because virtually all of their citizens already have machine-readable passports. Those countries are Andorra, Brunei, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Slovenia. As of October 1, 2003, visa waiver travelers from those five countries must present either a machine-readable passport or a United States visa. Belgium, which is also a visa waiver country, was not eligible to receive this extension. Belgian nationals who wish to travel under the auspices of the Visa Waiver Program have been required to present a machine-readable passport since May 15, 2003. Citizens of Visa Waiver Program countries are permitted to enter the United States for general business or tourist purposes for a maximum of 90 days without needing a visa. For those that do need one, details on how to apply for a visa to the U.S. are available at http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhvisa-20030704a1.html, or call the U.S. Embassy Visa Information Line at 03-5354-4033. --------------------------------------------------------- Upcoming Holidays --------------------------------------------------------- The Embassy and our Consulates will be closed on October 13 for Columbus Day, and November 3 for Japanese Culture Day. A full list of all of our holiday closings for 2003 is online at http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhacs-holidays.html. As a reminder, workdays just before and just after a holiday are usually very busy times, so if you do come in to see us then your wait will likely be longer than on other days. Visit us outside of those times and you should have a shorter wait. If you do come to see us at the Embassy in Tokyo, note that we have two lines to enter the building once you pass the initial security check; a (usually) longer line for visa applicants and a much shorter line for customers coming for American Citizen Services help. --------------------------------------------------- Computer Security --------------------------------------------------- With all the concern over computer viruses, hacking and the like, http://www.grc.com offers straightforward, non-inflammatory advice and information, some fairly technical. The site also has a number of useful utilities and will allow you to stage a fake "attack" on your own PC to test its defenses. Bogus email is nothing new, but several recent attacks have shown increased cleverness. A current threat made known to us by our listserv provider has an email arrive with "Subject: Official Notice for All E-Bay Users" and requests that you click a link to update your credit card info. Don't do it. There are several red flags: the link provided says "https" to an ebay.com location, but in reality it's a link to an IP-based server; the extended email headers on the message show it originated in the Netherlands, not from ebay and there are several misspellings. Similar scams are on the Internet appearing to be from PayPal and Best Buy, asking for your credit card data. Viruses are also being emailed to you purporting to be from "Microsoft" with a note saying they are actually security patches. Do not install them. --------------------------------------------------- TELL Connoisseurs' Auction at the American Ambassador's Residence --------------------------------------------------- Discover superb Old and New World wines and rare luxury connoisseur items at the premier Charity wine auction in Tokyo in support of TELL Tokyo English Life Line. Don't miss this opportunity to taste a wide variety of American Wines presented by six of Japan's leading wine importers and accompanied by a cocktail style dinner buffet. And, of course, you will have a chance to bid for a selection fine and rare wines from around the world at the live and silent auctions. You will also have the unique opportunity to visit one of the most extraordinary residences and gardens in Tokyo. This year the stunning American Ambassador's Residence has graciously been offered as the backdrop for this gala event. TELL is an accessible, community-serving, non - profit organization that provides Life Line counseling, workshops, psychotherapy and psychiatric referral for foreigners and Japanese since 1973. All funds raised at the auction will ensure that TELL can continue to offer its vital mental healthcare services to the community 365 days a year. The event will be held on November 7th, 2003 from 5:30 pm- 9:30 pm at the American Ambassador's Residence located at 1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo. Tickets are available for purchase at Yen 10,000 from the TELL Office, so please ask for the registration form on 03-3498-0261 or by emailing admin@telljp.com. --------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribing --------------------------------------------------- We make every attempt to include in our newsletter information of real value. We know that should world events dictate, we can use this email channel to get important information to you, as we did in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. That said, if you are leaving Japan or otherwise wish to unsubscribe from this list, please write from the same email address you used to subscribe, and send a blank email to: leave-tokyoacs@mh.databack.com Inclusion of Non-U.S. Government links or information does not imply endorsement of contents.