American Citizens Services Newsletter
ACS Newsletter (October 2008)
U.S. Consulate General Hong Kong and Macau
Welcome to the October Newsletter! Here are this month's topics:
New Topics:
Continuing Topics of Interest:
UPCOMING HOLIDAYS AND OTHER CLOSURES
The Consulate General will be closed on the following holidays:
October 1 | | National Day |
October 7 | | Chung Yeung Festival |
October 13 | | Columbus Day |
REGISTER TO VOTE NOW!
American citizens should register to vote now for the November 4, 2008 presidential and general elections. Many states close voter registration 30 days before the general election. Don't forget the time it takes for voting forms to reach the U.S. by mail.
Voters who have not yet registered to vote and requested an absentee ballot should complete a Federal Postcard Application (FPCA) on the Federal Voting Assistance Program's website at www.fvap.gov. You may also pick up a hard copy of the FPCA from any U.S. Embassy or Consulate.
You should also complete a new Federal Postcard Application if you have moved or changed your name since the last time you voted. FPCA mailing options are listed below.
Your local voting officials should mail your absentee ballot 30 to 45 days before the November 4 general election to your overseas address. Return your voted ballot as early as possible. Be aware of your state's ballot receipt deadline, as well as any postmarking requirements.
EMERGENCY BALLOTS
The Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB) serves as an emergency ballot for voters who registered in time but fail to receive an official ballot from local election officials. You can access the FWAB at www.fvap.gov. If you receive your state absentee ballot after submitting the FWAB, you can still vote and return the state ballot up to and including Election Day.
ABSENTEE VOTING WEEK - OCTOBER 12 TO 18, 2008
October 12 to October 18, 2008 has been designated Absentee Voting Week. Overseas voters should vote and return their state absentee ballot or the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB) during this week.
On October 15 from 4-7 PM, we will have extended hours for so that Americans residing in Hong Kong can vote. American Citizens come in to the U.S. Consulate General at 26 Garden Road in Hong Kong to return their voted absentee ballots for mailing by the Consulate and those who have not received their absentee ballots can fill in and have notarized a Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot. Please don't forget to bring your U.S. Passport and previous U.S. address!
STATE BALLOT RETURN DEADLINES!
Below is a list of General Election Deadlines for Overseas Citizens and Military stationed in the U.S. and abroad. States appearing twice on the list are indicated with an asterisk. Please also be aware of states with postmark deadlines.
November 3:
Mississippi*, Overseas Citizens, 5pm
North Carolina, 5pm
November 4:
Alabama, 12pm
American Samoa, 1:30pm
Arizona, 7pm
Colorado, 7pm
Connecticut, COP
Delaware, 8pm
Guam, 8pm
Hawaii, COP
Idaho, 8pm
Indiana, COP
Kentucky, COP
Louisiana
Maine, 8pm
Michigan, 8pm
Minnesota, COP
Mississippi*, Overseas Military, 7pm
Missouri, 7pm
Montana, 8pm
Nebraska, COP
Nevada, 7pm
New Hampshire, 5pm
New Jersey, COP
New Mexico, COP
Oklahoma, 7pm
Puerto Rico, 3pm
Rhode Island, 9pm
South Carolina, COP
South Dakota, COP
Tennessee, COP
Virginia, 7pm
West Virginia
Wisconsin*, Overseas Citizens, COP
Wyoming, COP
November 7:
Georgia, postmarked by Nov. 4
North Dakota
November 10:
Iowa, 12pm, postmarked by Nov. 3
Texas, in delivery by Nov. 4
November 11:
New York*, Overseas Citizens, postmarked by Nov. 3 Pennsylvania, postmarked by Nov. 3
November 14:
Arkansas, 5pm
District of Columbia
Florida, 7pm
Ohio
Virgin Islands
Wisconsin*, Military, 5pm, postmarked by Nov. 4 Massachusetts, postmarked Nov. 4
November 17:
New York*, Military, postmarked by Nov. 3
November 18:
Illinois, postmarked by Nov. 3
Utah, 12pm, postmarked by Nov. 3
November 19:
Alaska
November 25:
Washington, oath sign/dated by Nov. 4
"COP" Stands for Close Of Polls.
MAILING OPTIONS FOR VOTING MATERIALS
Voters in Hong Kong have a number of options for mailing Federal Postcard Applications, voted state ballots, and Federal Write-in Absentee Ballots to their local election officials in the United States. Mailing addresses for local election officials and state mailing deadlines can be found in the Voting Assistance Guide, available on-line at www.fvap.gov.
- First Class Mail: You may mail your Federal Postcard Application or voted ballot to the United States through the Hong Kong Post system, with appropriate international postage. Mail to the U.S. takes approximately 7-10 days.
-FPO Military Mail: FPO mail to the United States leaves daily (M-F) from the Consulate and takes approximately 1-2 days to get to the U.S., mail speed once within the U.S. varies and could take 5-10 days. Voters should submit their ballots to the U.S. Consulate no later than October 21 for FPO mail. Ballots must be postage-paid or have first-class U.S. postage.
-Express Courier: Last-minute voters can use express courier services such as FedEx, UPS and DHL to send their voted ballots to all states and territories except Alabama. Express courier companies cannot deliver to post office boxes, so you will need to know the street address of your local voting official in the United States. Mail sent by express courier companies is not postmarked. Contact information for some local express courier companies follows:
Fed Ex: www.fedex.com or https://www.overseasvotefoundation.org/overseas/ExpressYourVote.htm, (852) 2730 3333.
Note: From September 15 to October 29, FedEx will ship voted ballots to the U.S. free from Hong Kong.
UPS: www.ups.com
DHL: www.dhl.com
COVERAGE OF THE 2008 PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES AVAILABLE TO ALL CITIZENS AT HOME AND ABROAD
The Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP) has joined with the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) to make the 2008 election debates more valuable to Americans abroad. DebateWatch is the CPD's nonpartisan, international program that brings U.S. citizens together to watch and discuss this fall's presidential and vice presidential debates.
All across the world, citizens will meet in schools, libraries, theaters, hotels, civic auditoriums, homes, and elsewhere to watch the debates on television or the Internet, or listen to them on the radio.
At the end of each debate and before commentary begins, the facilitator will turn off the broadcast and lead participants in a discussion about the debate, the candidates, and the upcoming election. After finishing their discussion, participants may log on to the CPD's website, www.debates.org, to fill out a voluntary survey and provide feedback to the CPD. If you would like to learn more about DebateWatch or register to organize one of these meetings, please see www.debates.org, or email debatewatch@debates.org.
Presidential debates are a permanent part of every Presidential general election, Debates provide a means for viewers and listeners to become informed about the candidates' positions on the issues. The CPD's primary purpose is to sponsor and produce debates for the United States presidential and vice presidential candidates and to undertake research and educational activities relating to the debates. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization sponsored all the presidential debates since 1988.
For the 2008 general election, CPD teamed up with Myspace to create a new website, www.MyDebates.org. The website which will be operational in early September will try and enhance the educational value of the debates while engaging new audiences. The CPD believes, "the Internet can be used to personalize the debates in a way that allows for in-depth examination by individual citizens and joint discussion with others." The new website will include tools for citizens to make scorecards of important issues and help track the issues throughout the debates.
Voters can submit questions for possible inclusion in the town meeting debate via www.MyDebates.org. This new venture plans to offer unprecedented access and flexibility in following these debates through forums that discuss numerous topics.
More information about the CPD and MyDebates.org can be found at www.debates.org.
The schedules for this fall's debates are as follows: |
First presidential debate | | Friday, September 26 |
| Vice-presidential debate | | Thursday, October 2 |
| Second presidential debate | | Tuesday, October 7 |
| Third presidential debate | | Wednesday, October 15 |
All debates will begin at 9 pm E.T., and will be carried by international media outlets. The debates will have a single moderator and last for 90 minutes.
U.S. Presidential Debates 2008 Live on TVB Pearl
To provide Hong Kong viewers with the latest development of the U.S. Presidential election, TVB Pearl is going to broadcast the four upcoming presidential debates, live.
The four debates of the 2008 U.S. presidential general election will take place at various locations around the United States in late September to mid October 2008. Three of the debates involve presidential nominees, and one involves the vice-presidential nominees. In addition to the debates, two specials on the profile of the presidential nominees will also be aired on TVB Pearl.
Airdate | Program | Airtime |
September 25 (Thu) | Decision 08 The Candidates John McCain | 2000-2105 |
September 26 (Fri) | Decision 08 The Candidates Barack Obama | 2030-2130 |
September 27 (Sat) | U.S. Presidential debate | 0900-1030 (Live)
After News Roundup at around 2355 (Re-run) |
October 3 (Fri) | U.S. Vice-Presidential debate | 0900-1030 (Live)
After News Roundup at around 2500 (Re-run) |
October 8 (Wed) | U.S. Presidential debate | 0900-1030 (Live)
After News Roundup at around 2400 (Re-run) |
October 16 (Thu) | U.S. Presidential debate | 0900-1030 (Live)
After News Roundup (Re-run) |
PLANNED CONSULAR SERVICES ON MACAU DAY
On Wednesday, October 22, 2008, our staff will travel to Macau to provide limited consular services for American Citizens. Services to be offered during this visit include notarials (US$30 for each signature of the consular officer), passport processing (US$75, US$85, or US$100 depending on age and type), birth registration (US$65 for each child), and adding additional visa pages. We will also have Federal Write-In Absentee Ballots available for those who have not yet received their absentee ballots by mail. We will also accept voted absentee ballots for mailing to the United States.
Please note that we will only be able to accept credit cards as payment – no cash transactions will be permitted. Customers may pay using MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Diners Club or Discover card. Customers must present their card at the time of payment and the person whose name is listed on the card must be present to sign the payment slip. All charges will be in U.S. dollars.
Provided your passport is in good condition, the American Citizens Services unit will also process requests for additional passport pages. In order to have additional pages inserted in your passport in Macau, you must complete and sign the application form (DS-4085) in full and scan and email it or fax it to our office no later than Monday, October 22. The form is available for download on our website. In addition, please send a copy of the biographic page of your passport (the page with your photo) with the application. Our email address is acshk@state.gov and our fax number is (852) 2845-4845. Bring the completed application form with your passport to Macau Day, where the additional pages will be added. If we are unable to provide this service to you in Macau, we will notify you in advance of Macau Day and ask you to come to the Consulate General in Hong Kong.
Services will be available from 12:00 noon to 2:00 p.m. at the Academy of Music, located at Rua de Santa Clara, No. 19, 2/F, adjacent to City Hall and near Catholic Social Services, Rua de Santa Clara 13, Macau. Clients who are physically challenged and/or require special arrangements to access this location may call (852) 2841-2211, 2841-2323 or 2841-2225 in advance to facilitate access.
To enable us to best assist you in Macau:
- Please check our website for information on what specific identification, forms and supporting documents are required for each service. Download the appropriate forms and bring them with you.
- Please present your U.S. passport for all services.
- Please bring the original and one photocopy of each piece of identification and/or supporting document (such as passports, birth certificates, marriage and divorce certificates, Macau ID cards, etc.).
If you need a service not listed above, please contact us in advance at (852) 2841-2211, 2841-2323, or 2841-2225. We may be able to bring with us what you need for that service.
VISAS TO VISIT OR DO BUSINESS IN THE PRC
We have heard numerous complaints from Americans who have recently received limited (less than multiple entry) Chinese visas. The following is advice that will (hopefully) increase your chances of receiving multiple entries:
- Make it clear on your application that you are applying for a multiple entry visa and why.
- Give as much detail as you can, at least for the first planned visit to China.
- Apparently most travel agencies (such as CTS) are telling their clients that multiple entry visas are not available. The PRC Commission in Hong Kong has assured us otherwise. Either insist that the travel agency request a multi-entry visa or submit your application directly to the PRC visa office.
- You no longer have to provide hotel vouchers or airline reservation with your application. However, business applicants should be prepared to show why they need to travel into China on multiple occasions, including letter(s) of invitation from Chinese counterparts.
- If you are a resident of Hong Kong, be sure to include a copy of your Hong Kong ID.
SUBSCRIBING/UNSUBSCRIBING
Anyone who wishes to sign up to receive this monthly ACS email newsletter and the travel advice we provide can do so simply by going to our web page and submitting their email address in the fill-in box towards the bottom of the page. You can also unsubscribe through the web page.
New subscribers will be sent the last few messages we have sent out in a digest form to help them catch up. Back issues are on the web at http://hongkong.usconsulate.gov/acs_newsletter.html.
This newsletter is published by the American Citizens Services Unit, U.S. Consulate General, Hong Kong, Tel: 2841-2211, 2841-2323, 2841-2225; Fax: 2845-4845; e-mail: acshk@state.gov; website: http://hongkong.usconsulate.gov; All services by online appointment only.
Last modified: September 29, 2008
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