Have you seen our blog post “Top Ten Questions by American Citizens”?   Did we answer all of your questions?  If not, and you are one of the many thousands of American citizens traveling to the United Kingdom for the London 2012 Games, join us on May 31 at 4:00 pm (11:00 am EDT) when a consular officer from American Citizen Services will be on hand to answer your questions via twitter.  We will take tweets posted ahead of time @USAinUKCGCorner and answer them live during the chat, so mark the date in your calendar and join us for our inaugural twitter chat.  To make sure your tweet comes to our attention, please use the following hash tag #AmcitVisitorsUK.  We look forward to chatting to you.

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Are you getting ready to come to London in 2012 for the Olympic Games? Make sure that you’re prepared. The U.S. Embassy has put together an interactive YouTube video featuring the Top 10 questions asked by American Citizens, such as “Do I need a visa to come to the UK?” and “Who do I contact in an emergency?”.

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Department of State’s Office of Art in Embassies Announces American Artist Lecture Series

The Department of State’s Office of Art in Embassies (AIE) is pleased to announce the AIE American Artist Lecture Series at the Tate Modern-London, in a unique collaboration with Embassy London.  In celebration of AIE’s 50th anniversary, the three-year-long program will feature six noted American artists.

Brice Marden, internationally recognized minimalist painter, will inaugurate the lecture series on May 14, 2012. Marden received his MFA from the Yale School of Art and Architecture in 1963. He has been the subject of numerous one-man shows and retrospectives at such venues as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Marden is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a longtime contributor to AIE.

The Tate Modern, with 45 million visitors since it was established in 2000 as part of the Tate Britain, is a catalyst for the transformation of public attitudes toward the visual arts in the U.K.

The AIE program was established by the Museum of Modern Art in 1953, and formalized as part of the Department of State by the Kennedy Administration in 1963.  It is one of the United States’ premier public-private partnership arts organizations, with over 20,000 individual and institutional participants, and a presence in some 200 venues in 189 countries worldwide. AIE furthers U.S. diplomacy through the power of the visual arts by expansive, international cultural exchange initiatives.

For more information about Art in Embassies, please contact Dabney Kerr at KerrD@state.gov or (703) 875-4209, or visit http://art.state.gov.  For more information about the participation of U.S. Embassy London in this program and other arts programs, contact spokesperson Lynne Platt at plattlg@state.gov or +44-20-7894-0672.

This information can also be found on our website at http://london.usembassy.gov/events/2012/2012_005.html .

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Children born in the UK to one or more U.S. citizen parents may have a claim to U.S. citizenship. Detailed instructions on how to register the birth of your child can be found on our website at http://london.usembassy.gov/cons_new/acs/passports/robirth4.html . If you find the instructions confusing, you may wish to click through our Slideshare presentation below for a step-by-step guide. 

Don’t forget that you can join us on May 3rd, 2012 for a Live Webchat with a Consular Officer about the Consular Report of Birth Abroad!

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The Embassy would like to advise American Citizens of planned protests in London throughout Tuesday, May 1. 

Time:  0700 hours onwards.

Location:  London — Finsbury Square underground station, Liverpool Street station, Paternoster Square, Clerkenwell Green, West One Shopping Centre (Davies Street)

Organizers:  Occupy London, UK Uncut, Solidarity Federation, London May Day Organizing Committee

Details:  Protests organized by the anti-capitalist Occupy London movement commence at 0700 GMT at Finsbury Square underground station and at 0800 GMT at Liverpool Street station. Occupy London’s website says activists will aim to “occupy” London’s subway system.

At 1130 GMT, Occupy London protesters will link up with the main May Day march, which is being organized by the London May Day Organizing Committee (LMDOC). LMDOC is a coalition of “trade unionists, workers from the many international communities in London, pensioners, anti-globalization organizations, students, political bodies and many others in a show of working class unity.” The march commences from Paternoster Square at approximately 1230 GMT and finishes at Trafalgar Square.

The anti-tax avoidance group UK Uncut and the anarchist Solidarity Federation will break away from the May Day march and reconvene at 1600GMT at West One Shopping Centre on Davies Street. Protesters from these groups will target the premises of companies associated with the government’s “workfare” employment scheme. Previous direct action workfare protests organized by UK Uncut and Solidarity Federation were peaceful.

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As summer is fast approaching and we are less than 100 days from the commencement of the Olympic Games, we would like to highlight a recent media report that discussed a recent surge in Eastern European migrants that has resulted in increased begging, pick pocketing and prostitution in Westminster.  In advance of the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympic Games organized crime gangs are trafficking in persons to London to exploit the large number of expected tourists and visitors. We would like to remind all  American citizens of recommended personal security practices to follow in order to reduce the risk of becoming a victim.

Ensure your purse and wallet is secure, any flaps or zips on purses should be secured to prevent pickpockets from targeting you. Consider spreading your valuables around your body, i.e. cell phone in a coat pocket and house keys in another. Do not hang purses over the backs of chairs in restaurants or pubs – keep control of your items at all times.

Be aware of your surroundings and the people around you when in crowded areas like Oxford Street.

If you need to visit an ATM always try to use the machine inside the bank as they are monitored by CCTV, near staff members and are the least likely to be targeted by thieves.

Try not to advertize your personal valuables such as expensive jewelry, watches, mp3 players and cell phones whilst out walking or shopping.  Remember wearing headphones takes one of your senses away and you can’t hear what’s around you.

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Photo: Scott Partee on Flickr

Join us on Thursday, May 3 between 12 and 1:00 pm when you will have an opportunity to put your question to a Consular Officer from American Citizen Services - https://statedept.connectsolutions.com/london

If you would like to post your questions ahead of time, please do so here on our blog, or on our twitter feed. We will answer all questions at the time of the web chat.

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The Social Security number (SSN) is used to keep a record of workers’ earnings and to monitor benefits paid under the Social Security program.  Here are some things you can do to protect your number:

Your SSN is precious.  Keep the number and card in a safe place to prevent theft – don’t carry the card with you.

Except for your employer, official US government agencies and financial institutions, which need them for tax reporting purposes, you are not required to give out your Social Security number to private businesses.  Giving the number is voluntary even when asked for the number directly.  If requested, you should ask them:

•    Why they need the number
•    How it will be used
•    What happens if you refuse to give them the number
•    And what law requires you to give them the number

The answers to these questions can help you decide if you want to give out your SSN.  The decision is yours but you should also be aware that refusal to give the number might mean having to do without the purchase or service for which the number was requested.

The Social Security Administration protects your Social Security number and keeps your records confidential.  We do not give your number to anyone unless:

•    The law requires us to disclose it to another government agency
•    It is needed to conduct Social Security or other government health or welfare program business.

If an individual suspects someone is using their number for work purposes, they should contact us to report the problem.  We will review their earnings with them to ensure that our records are correct:  FBU.London@ssa.gov.

If you suspect that someone has used your SSN to establish credit, borrow money or if they have tampered with an existing credit account, you may be a victim of identity fraud and you need to:

•    File a police report with the police department where the identity theft took place, and keep a copy of the police report as proof of the crime.

•    You will also need to notify the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).  The FTC maintains a centralized database to receive all allegations of identity theft and to provide victims with information to help resolve problems with identity theft.  They can be reached:

Online:        https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/

By mail:    Federal Trade Commission
Consumer Response Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC  20580.

The purpose of this message is:  You need to be careful with your SSN and your card to minimize the possibility that your SSN will be misused.

If you have general questions about the Social Security program, please go to: www.socialsecurity.gov.  For specific questions about your case contact London’s Federal Benefits Unit at: FBU.London@ssa.gov.

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If your child has a claim to U.S. citizenship, you will need to come to the Embassy to apply for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad. This video will help you prepare for your appointment. Go to http://london.usembassy.gov/cons_new/acs/passports/robirth4.html for more information.

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