U.S. Embassy in Zambia

The Department of State assists U.S. citizens imprisoned overseas and works to ensure their fair and humane treatment.

The U.S. Embassy Zambia helps the family and friends of U.S. citizens who die abroad. We inform the U.S. citizen’s next-of-kin of the death, and we provide information on arrangements for local burial or the return of remains to the United States and on disposition of estates and personal effects. We also issue a Consular Report of Death Abroad, an official record of death.

The Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues works to resolve and prevent cases of international parental child abduction and to help children and families involved in abduction cases. For more information, see our international parental child abduction page on travel.state.gov.

The Department of State helps U.S. citizens who are victims of crime overseas. We connect crime victims with police and other services and provide information and resources to assist with physical, emotional, and/or financial injuries from crime.

Are you a U.S. citizen who needs a passport?

Among the highest priorities of the Department of State and our missions abroad is the safety and security of locally-resident Americans overseas. In the past year, the Department has intervened to assist in the evacuation of Americans from half a dozen countries throughout the world as a result of serious political or economic unrest, natural disasters, and terrorist attacks.

If you are considering adopting in Zambia, please note that Zambia is a party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect to Intercountry Adoption. The Convention entered into force on October 1, 2015. All adoptions between the United States and Zambia must be processed according to Convention rules. The Government of Zambia is currently reviewing adoption-related legislation and systems to process cases according to the Hague Convention. As such, adoptive parents may find inconsistencies in timeframes and other aspects of the adoption process. If you decide to proceed with adoption in Zambia, please contact us early at If you decide to proceed with adoption in Zambia, please contact us early at acslusaka@state.gov so that we can ensure you receive the latest guidance and are prepared for the immigrant visa stage of the process.

A child born outside the United States to a U.S. citizen parent or parents may be eligible for U.S. citizenship if the parent(s) meets the requirements for transmitting U.S. citizenship under the Immigration and Nationality Act. U.S. citizens eligible to transmit citizenship are required to file for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA).

If you are a U.S. citizen in Zambia and your child is born here, we can help you obtain proof of U.S. citizenship for your child. Please review our Consular Report of Birth Abroad checklist (PDF) which outlines all the application requirements. Once you have all the required documents, please schedule an appointment by emailing ACSLusaka@state.gov.

U.S. embassy and consulate personnel cannot perform marriages. Depending on the local law, civil or religious officials generally perform marriages. If your marriage overseas was performed in accordance with local law, it is valid in the country where it took place. Whether your marriage is recognized elsewhere depends on the laws of that place.