Visitor Information

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

DARPA is a secure facility. Visitors should arrange an appointment with a program manager or other DARPA staff prior to visiting.

There are no public tours of the facility.

Visiting
The following guidelines are provided to make your visit to DARPA both productive and pleasant. We also want to ensure we provide a safe and secure environment for you and your information as well as for our people, property, and information. Please assist us in this effort by complying with our security requirements.

If you are registering for attendance to an event sponsored at the DARPA Conference Center (DCC), you must submit a completed DARPA eForm-104 three business days in advance.  Please contact the DARPA Office hosting the event for an eForm-104.

Parking
Visitor parking is not available in the DARPA building. However, street parking is available nearby, and there are paid garages in the area, including the Ballston Commons Mall, which is located directly across the street from the DARPA facility.

Public transportation
DARPA is accessible by Metrorail. The nearest Metrorail station is the Ballston-Marymount University station on Metro’s Orange and Silver lines. The walk from the Metro station to DARPA takes approximately 7 minutes.
Directions 

NOTE: Metro is currently undergoing a prolonged period of maintenance that may affect commute times. Refer to Metro’s “Status and Alerts” page for more information.

Clearance/Visit request
Prior to arrival, your clearance/visit request must be on file with the VWC for collateral visits and the Special Security Office (SSO) for visits involving Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI).

NOTE: Before individuals transmit Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or other sensitive data to DARPA, it is recommended that they apply appropriate physical, administrative, and technical protocols to safeguard their privacy. Once DARPA receives PII or sensitive personal data, it secures it from unauthorized access, use or disclosure in a controlled, secure environment.

• For collateral-level visits, please have the requesting FSO send a visit request using the SMO Code: DDAAUS4, you may also fax your clearance/visit request to DARPA at (703) 528-3655 or send it via encrypted email to: VWC@DARPA.mil.
• For SCI-level visits, please fax your clearance/visit request to the SSO at 703-528-3655 (unclassified). You may also send your SCI visit requests as follows:
  • Via JWICS, the requesting SSO may send a message with the visit information to SSO DARPA.
  • Via DISS, the requesting SSO may send a visit request using the SMO Code DDAAUS2.  

Check in
All visitors entering this facility will pass through a metal detector prior to entry. If you have a medical condition that prevents you from entering a metal detector or have metal implants that would set off an alarm, please let the officers know and alternate processing methods will be used. If necessary, inspections may be conducted using handheld metal detectors (similar to the process used at airports). All visitor hand-carried items will be x-rayed prior to entry. Your cooperation with these mandatory antiterrorism measures is appreciated. Once cleared by the officer, you will be directed to the Visitor Welcome Center (VWC) for badge processing.

When you check-in at the VWC, you will be asked a series of questions related to your visit and equipment in your possession. The VWC uses facial recognition to expedite entry to the DARPA facility by determining whether registered visitors are returning to the building. This use of facial recognition is not a data collection. There are no images captured and no records made. For more information, refer to the lobby signage.

You will be required to show government-issued, picture identification that is compliant with the REAL ID Act of 2005. 

Normally, this will be a state-issued driver’s license for U.S. citizens and a passport for foreign nationals, but not all states are compliant with the REAL ID Act. 

Prior to your arrival at DARPA, you should check the Department of Homeland Security website to ensure your driver’s license is compliant. If your state is not compliant, you will need to provide one of the below identification credentials for entry. NOTE: You will be denied entry if you do not have a valid, REAL ID Act compliant form of identification.

1. Federally-issued identification
   • U.S. Passport
   • U.S. Passport Card
   • PIV or Federally issued Personal Identification Verification – Cards
   • Driver’s License issued by the U.S. Department of State
   • Border Crossing Card (Form DSP-150)
   • DHS “Trusted Traveler” Cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
   • U.S. Military ID (all members of the U.S. Armed Forces [including retirees and dependent ID card holders]) and veterans
   • Veterans Health Identification Card issued by the U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs
   • U.S. Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551)
   • U.S. Certificate of Naturalization or Certificate of Citizenship (Form N-550)
   • Employment Authorization Document issued by DHS (Form I-766)
   • U.S. Refugee Travel Document or other travel document or evidence of immigration status issued by DHS containing a photograph (Permit to Re-enter Form I-327 and Refugee Travel Document Form I-571)
   • Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC)
   • Merchant Mariner Card issued by DHS/United States Coast Guard (USCG)
2. State-issued identification
   • A driver’s license or identification card issued by a state that meets the REAL ID standards or has an extension
   • State-issued EDLs (enhanced-drivers-license)
   • Interim Driver’s License issued by a state that meets the REAL ID standards or has an extension
3. Other
   • Native American Tribal Photo ID
   • Foreign government-issued passport
   • PIV-I cards (issued by non-Federal Government entities)

VWC personnel will inventory your equipment and provide you with a property pass for any equipment approved to accompany you on your visit and to use while within and when exiting DARPA. This pass verifies ownership and authority to possess the equipment while in the facility and to take it with you when you leave. Your equipment will be checked for wireless and audio/visual recording devices and you will be provided a pamphlet with the DARPA rules for visitors. Various signs are posted at the building entrances advising you of security requirements. If your visit will take place over several days, you must register each day with the VWC.

Visit verification
Upon completion of your visit registration, your DARPA point of contact (POC) will be contacted to verify your visit time and location. If you have arrived early, the POC may ask you to wait in the lobby until the scheduled visit time. A café is available on the first floor and several coffee shops and restaurants are in the immediate area. If you have not made prior arrangements with your DARPA POC, your visit may be denied. If the visit is approved, you will be issued a DARPA visitor badge.

Escort requirements
All approved visitors to DARPA are escorted throughout the facility by an authorized member of the DARPA staff. The first floor lobby, restrooms, café and any area outside the main building are the only areas excluded from the escort requirement. If you wish to visit multiple people within DARPA, you must register each visit with the VWC, which will verify the acceptance of the visit with each DARPA POC.

Foreign nationals 
If you are not a U.S. citizen, a completed “U.S. Permanent Resident and Foreign National Visit Request” must be provided to DARPA two business days prior to your visit. Be sure to complete a U.S. Permanent Resident and Foreign National Visit Request (eform 60). DARPA secures PII or sensitive personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure in a controlled, secure environment. Please remember to bring your passport.

If you are a U.S. Permanent Resident, please remember to bring your permanent residency card.

Official foreign visits
If you represent your government in an official capacity, please contact your embassy in Washington, D.C., to apply to visit DARPA as an official foreign visitor. 

Weapons prohibited
Items that can be used as weapons are strictly prohibited from being brought into DARPA facilities. Examples are:

• Guns
• Explosives or ammunition
• Knives with blades over 2½ inches
• Clubs, nunchucks, or other martial arts devices

Recording devices
Devices that have the ability to capture images (e.g., cameras and camera phones) or sound (e.g., tape and digital recorders) are prohibited above the first floor of the DARPA facility. Photography and video recording is prohibited anywhere in the DARPA facility unless approved by DARPA Security and Intelligence Directorate (SID). Storage is available to you for storing your small electronics. If a business necessity exists, such as using these devices as part of a business presentation, prior arrangements must be made with the DARPA POC, who will coordinate with SID.

Wireless networking technology
DARPA’s wireless policy strictly prohibits the use of wireless technologies (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth) above the first floor of the DARPA facility. This prohibition includes wireless transmission devices such as two-way radios and pagers. Unauthorized wireless devices found in the DARPA facility may be confiscated.

Wireless exceptions
The following devices may be taken above the first floor of the DARPA facility

• Portable telephones (cell phones) that do not have a picture-taking capability.
• Personal electronic devices (PEDs) that do not have Bluetooth capability.
• One-way pagers.
• Laptops and iPads may be brought in (see note below) once the wireless signal, microphone, and webcam have been mitigated and verified by VWC staff. DARPA prohibits the use of wireless network above the first floor, a waiver is required if a visitor needs to use a wireless network or device as an integral part of the meeting or demonstration. All wireless devices (regardless of on/off state) are prohibited from secure areas.

NOTE: To use such devices for demos/presentations, visitors must first get the approval from their Government Host. At time of check-in, VWC personnel will contact the Government Host and verify the equipment has been approved for use. Director SID or his designee is the approving authority for these requests. 

Special assistance
In order to expedite your visit, we recommend bringing your presentation on removable media. If a DARPA loaner laptop is needed to support your visit, please notify your DARPA sponsor 48 hours prior to your visit.

Laptops
DARPA provides a public network that may be used by visitors on the first floor of the facility. Laptops that have been approved for entry may be attached to the DARPA Public Network (DPN) and may be attached to DARPA projectors in the conference rooms. 

High-security areas, classified meetings, and discussions
All cell phones and PEDs are prohibited in classified meetings and in high security areas such as SCIFs and SAPFs. Advise the VWC staff if you will be discussing classified information.