While the United States government regularly participates in international law enforcement cooperation, there are still many countries that refuse to extradite their own citizens. Moreover, the Secretary of State has discretionary authority to determine whether a transfer of a U.S. citizen is in violation of an extradition treaty. This means that the individual's extradition to another country may be barred from court jurisdiction, even if the underlying criminal charges were dropped.

The United States has more than 100 bilateral extradition treaties. These treaties follow a standard format, and most of them exclude political offenses. However, there are also recent treaties that limit the scope of the political offense exception. In addition, some of these treaties allow for "explanatory" evidence, which allows individuals to offer evidence to contradict the evidence provided by the requesting state.

Treaty requirements include that the requesting state's laws must authorize prosecution and punishment of extraditable offenses. Some treaties also provide that the passage of time is not a bar to extradition. A few treaties specifically require that the requesting state's statute of limitations be the only relevant limit. Other treaties include an exception for nationality, which provides that the defendant's nationality is not a limiting factor in extradition.

The Department of State reviews the requesting state's extradition request, determining if it meets the criteria of the treaty. If the requesting state does not meet the requirements, the Department of State will ask the foreign government to clarify. It is also possible for the Department of State to ask the foreign government to resubmit the request.

Requests for extradition are typically submitted by the governor of a state, and the Department of State will evaluate the request and make the necessary arrangements. Once the Department of State determines that the request meets the requirements of the treaty, it will transmit it to the Office of Interagency Affairs (OIA). OIA attorneys are Department of Justice subject-matter experts on extradition. They conduct a review of the documents, and then forward the request to the appropriate U.S. Attorney's office.

An extradition hearing is held before an independent judiciary. The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether there is probable cause to believe that the fugitive committed a crime. Probable cause is the legal standard in the United States. During the hearing, the government lays out the evidence to establish probable cause. During the hearing, the fugitive's identity is also determined. Unlike a criminal trial, the rules governing the hearing are not strictly applied.

The United States has had an extradition treaty with the former Yugoslavia prior to its dissolution. In addition, the United States has recognized some former Yugoslavian nations as successor states. Despite these agreements, there are dozens of important but less-publicized requests for extradition. As such, the diplomatic and law enforcement agencies in the United States deal with these requests on a regular basis.

Generally, the standard for extradition in the United States is probable cause. However, the Secretary of State has the discretionary authority to determine whether a transfer is in Us violations  of an extradition treaty. The Secretary of State's discretionary authority can be exercised on an outgoing request as well as an incoming one.