President Joe Biden’s administration is charging U.S. citizens for their flight out of Kabul, a U.S. State Department advisory states.
“Repatriation flights are not free, and passengers will be required to sign a promissory loan agreement and may not be eligible to renew their U.S. passports until the loan is repaid. The cost may be $2,000USD or more per person,” states an Overseas Security Advisory Council notice.
The OSAC is part of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security at the U.S. Department of State.
The agency had warned U.S. citizens to leave Afghanistan for days prior to the announcement containing the fee amount on repatriation flights.
Recall that on August 12, the agency offered “repatriation loans” to citizens in order to book commercial travel. That ended very shortly after the message was published as Kabul fell to the Taliban.
The notice also contained a warning that, “You should have a plan of action for crisis situations that does not rely on U.S. government assistance.” And, the notice reiterated, you are responsible for paying for your transportation.”
The agency had earlier noted that many citizens may not have access to their banking account as a result of the crisis, hence, getting a loan from the embassy is the only option and the receiver of that loan cannot get their passport renewed until the loan is repaid, referencing U.S. Law, specifically U.S. Code Title 22 Chapter 38, Section 2671.
But, in a statement shared with the Washington Examiner on Thursday, State Department spokesman Ned Price said, “In these unique circumstances, we have no intention of seeking any reimbursement from those fleeing Afghanistan.”
However, the report drew outrage from at least one member of Congress, Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York, who called on President Joe Biden to resign and said she was drafting legislation to ensure no U.S. citizen would have to pay for an evacuation flight out of Afghanistan.
A White House official said on Wednesday evening the United States, which sent thousands of troops back to assist with the effort at the Kabul airport, has evacuated nearly 6,000 people since Saturday. Price said on Thursday that there were 6,000 people at the airport in Kabul who have been “fully processed by our consular team and will soon board planes.”
Biden told ABC News on Wednesday that U.S. forces will remain in Afghanistan until all U.S. citizens are evacuated, even if that means keeping them there past the Aug. 31 deadline for a complete withdrawal.
