The Secretary of State published a Notice on Wednesday, August 2, 2017 that will restrict the use of U.S. passports to travel into, in, or through North Korea/the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), effective Friday, September 1, 2017.  The Secretary has authorized the restriction due to the serious and mounting risk of arrest and long-term detention of U.S. citizens under North Korea’s system of law enforcement. Persons who wish to travel to North Korea on a U.S. passport must obtain a special passport validation, and such validations will be granted only under very limited circumstances. The Department of State will publish information on how to apply for a passport with a special validation on travel.state.gov when Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval is effective. Since OMB issues the approval, the Department cannot provide any further information as to timing.