Executive Order 2285 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 2285—Requiring American Citizens Traveling Abroad to Procure Passports

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Wednesday, December 15, 1915

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1 min read (237 words)

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.

This executive order, signed by President Woodrow Wilson on 1915-12-15, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Requiring American Citizens Traveling Abroad to Procure Passports." It is a direct, concise executive instruction delivering focused administrative or military commands to department leadership.

Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪ Applications shall be made in the manner heretofore prescribed by the rules governing the granting and issuing of passports, but the Secretary of State may designate an agent or agents to take applications, and wherever his agent is stationed applications shall be made only before him.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities 🏛️ Financial Institutions & Monetary Authorities

Total Words

237

1,473 characters

Estimated Read Time

1 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

15.7

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

+0.02

Framers' Alignment index

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Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 2285, Woodrow Wilson (Dec 15, 1915). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-2285-requiring-american-citizens-traveling-abroad-procure-passports.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →

All persons leaving the United States for foreign countries should be provided with passports of the Governments of which they are citizens. These documents are rendered necessary because the regulations of all European countries and of several other foreign countries require passports or other documents of identification of all persons who enter their boundaries. The Secretary of State, in co-operation with the Secretary of the Treasury, will make arrangements for the inspection of passports of all persons, American or foreign, leaving this country, and the fact that these passports have been seen will be stamped thereon. All applications to the Secretary of State for passports from American citizens must be made in duplicate, and must be accompanied with three copies of the photograph of the applicant. Each applicant for a passport must inform the Department of State at what point he intends to depart, on what date, and by what ship if he sails from an American port. Applications shall be made in the manner heretofore prescribed by the rules governing the granting and issuing of passports, but the Secretary of State may designate an agent or agents to take applications, and wherever his agent is stationed applications shall be made only before him. This order will become effective as soon as the Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury have made the arrangements necessary for that purpose. WOODROW WILSON THE WHITE HOUSE, December 15, 1915.