What is a visa, and how does it differ from a passport?

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Images

Passport pages showing immigration stamps from Indonesia, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina, including red, blue, and black inked entry and exit stamps with visible dates in February 2020.

Cover of the 2007 U.S. passport, dark blue with gold text reading Passport and United States of America, featuring the Great Seal of the United States and an electronic passport symbol.

What is a visa, and how does it differ from a passport?: Media

Images

Passport pages showing immigration stamps from Indonesia, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina, including red, blue, and black inked entry and exit stamps with visible dates in February 2020.

Visa

A French passport with stamp visas for Indonesia, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina.

© Leonid Andronov/stock.adobe.com

Cover of the 2007 U.S. passport, dark blue with gold text reading Passport and United States of America, featuring the Great Seal of the United States and an electronic passport symbol.

Passport

A United States passport.

© Bryce Newell/Shutterstock.com