Important passport changes

If you’re heading away on holiday in the future then this is worth knowing

In 2006, the biometric passport was launched.

The Identity and Passport Service has introduced a range of procedures and systems to help prevent identity and passport fraud.

The new style passport contains a chip on which the passport holders photograph and personal information is recoded – the same information that is printed on page 31 of the passport.

The reason behind the new style passports being it would be difficult for criminals to forge or clone your passport with the new security features in place. If the passport is not genuine or has been tampered with, government agencies will be able to detect any wrong doing. The facial biometrics on the chip will help link the passport holder to the passport.

Whilst computer chips can be cloned it is unlikely that a new style passport could be copied or forged by using cloning methods. Nothing can be deleted or changed on your chip which is what is needed to forge a passport.

You will need one of these new biometric passports to enter the USA.

There is a story in the news today about a man who was turned away at the airport as his passport wasn’t biometric and he missed his holiday to Florida – his family had to go on without him whilst he stays behind and tries to sort out a new passport.

To check whether your passport is biometric, look at the front page and look for the chip symbol which looks like a camera…

 The ‘chip’ symbol