A German passport (, ) is an identity document issued to nationals of Germany for the purpose of international travel. A German passport is, besides the German ID card and the German Emergency Travel Document (called "Reiseausweis als Passersatz"), the only other officially recognised document that German authorities will routinely accept as proof of identity from German citizens. Besides serving as proof of identity and presumption of German nationality, they facilitate the process of securing assistance from German consular officials abroad (or other EU members in the case that a German consular facility is absent). German passports are valid for ten years (for people aged 24 and older) or six years (for people under the age of 24) and share the standardised layout and burgundy red design with other EU passports. Every German citizen is also a citizen of the European Union. The passport, along with the national identity card, allows for free rights of movement and residence in any of the states of the European Union, European Economic Area and Switzerland.
History The first passport regulations of what nowadays constitute the present-day territory of Germany were first enacted by the North German Confederation on 12 October 1867.Bundesgesetzblatt des Norddeutschen Bundes, p. 33.
During the First World War and in the interwar period thereafter, supplementary ordinances were issued on the obligation for German citizens to possess a passport.21 June 1916, Reichsgesetzblatt (RGBl). p. 599; 10 June 1919, RGBl. p. 516. This determined that a visa was required for entry and exit. Passports issued until the end of 1922 were only valid for one year; they could not be renewed after the introduction of the new model after 1923. The Bekanntmachung zur Ausführung der Paßverordnung as enacted on 4 June 1924RGBl. I, S. 613, zur Verordnung 1916. Ergänzt durch Verfügung des Preußischen Ministers des Inneren vom 22. September 1924, IV E 564. stipulated that only the new type in the form of a 15½ x 10½ cm booklet could be used. Entry and exit visas were also abolished. Such passports, which could only be issued to citizens of the Reich, were now valid for two years. The fee was set at in 1924.Verordnung über die Ausfertigung von Pässen ..., 27. Juni 1924, RGBl. I, S. 657. Geändert durch die Paßgebührenverordnung vom 28. Juni 1932, RGBl. I, S. 341. They could be extended for a total period of five years, by one year each. Service passports also followed this pattern. However, their covers were green instead of the otherwise used grey covers. Diplomatic and ministerial passports continued to be issued in sheet form until further notice. Identity cards, which could also be issued to foreigners who could not obtain a passport in their native countries, were regarded as a full-fledged passport replacement. Such documents were valid for one year and could be extended for another year. The fee was set at in 1924. These identity cards were also considered to be spiritual predecessors of the Nansen passport.
Between 1933 and 1936, the enactment of foreign exchange restrictions (10 marks of silver as cash) and the thousand-mark ban by the Nazi government effectively constituted exit permits.
From 1949 until 1950, the issuance of West German passports mainly fell under the authority of the Allied High Commission which governed West Germany at that time. On 1 January 1950, the German Office for Entry and Exit Affairs became the main authority for issuing West German passports, although it was still under the control of the Allied High Commission. Only on 1 February 1951 did West Germany gain full rights to issue its own passports independent of the Allied occupying forces.Ausstellung von Pässen, Mitteilung des BmdI vom 14. Dezember 1950 – 1211 C – 662/50, GMBI, S.13 West German passports at that time contained a "Job Description" field of the passport holder; this was initially necessary as the Allied occupying forces reserved the right to approve West German citizens obtaining travel visas until 1955. The "Job Description" field was eliminated after a passport regulation change on 12 June 1967.
In 1980, the biggest passport scandal in the Federal Republic of Germany (de:Passfälscherskandal) was uncovered when 19 North American ice hockey players were found to have been fraudulently issued with West German passports in order to play in the Eishockey-Bundesliga.
After the reunification of Germany in 1990, residents of the former East Germany were allowed to use valid East German passports for overseas travel until 31 December 1995, after which any such passports with remaining validity were automatically deemed invalid and these people had to apply for and obtain a German passport to travel overseas.
Time of processing Processing time for a German passport is usually four to eight weeks, but one can be issued in usually three days by using the Express service if processed before 11 am.
Physical appearance
German passports have, since 1 January 1988, followed the standard European Union passport design, with burgundy red cover and the federal eagle emblazoned in the centre of the front cover. On 23 February 2017, Germany unveiled a new passport design to be issued from 1 March 2017. The changes included moving from the previous hardcover to a flexible cover, as well as the elimination of the laminated data page in favour of a polycarbonate card. The new passport contains new security features and graphics. For example, a large depiction of the Brandenburg Gate and the federal eagle is visible under UV light, with some of the lyrics and notation of the national anthem embossed on the reverse of the data page.
The words Europäische Union (German for "European Union") and Bundesrepublik Deutschland (German for "Federal Republic of Germany") are inscribed above the coat of arms. The words Reisepass (German for "travel passport") and "Passport" and Passeport (English and French respectively, printed in a smaller font) appear below.
German passports are normally 32 pages long; a 48-page version for frequent travellers can be issued on request.
Identity Information Page
The first two pages of a German passport are security laminated and the second page includes the following data: Photo of passport owner Type of document (P = passport) Code for issuing country (D = Germany) Passport number (9 alphanumeric digits, e.g. C3JJ4789L, chosen from numerals 1–9 and letters C, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, R, T, V, W, X, Y, Z. The number ‘0’ has no longer been used since 1 November 2021 and the letter ‘O’ is generally not used. The first character is always a letter. For passports issued before 1 November 2023, the passport number may consist only of letters in exceptional cases.) Surname Name at birth Given names Date of birth Sex Nationality Deutsch Place of birth Date of issue Date of expiry Authority that issued the passport Owner's signature (_______)
The page ends with a 2-line machine readable zone, according to ICAO standard 9303. The country code is not DEU as is the standard country code for Germany (according to ISO 3166-1 alpha-3), but D. This is the only country/citizen code which does not consist of 3 letters. The MRZ also includes a version number (YYMM).
In November 2001, the so-called Identigram feature was added – a number of holographic security elements, including a three-dimensional eagle, a holographic copy of the holder's picture (the so-called Holographic Shadow Picture), a holographic copy of the machine-readable zone, holographic microprinting, and kinematic elements.
Following page
The following page (page 1) lists: Residence Height Colour of eyes (in German language) Doctorate (since May 2024) Religious name or pseudonym
Languages The data page/information page is printed in German, English, and French. The passport card cover page features the words 'European Union', 'Federal Republic of Germany', and 'Passport' in the 24 official languages of the European Union.
Required documents to apply for the passport (Adult) outside Germany Completed application FORM Two identical, biometrically compatible, recent passport photos. The applicant's birth certificate (notarised) with information about the exact place of birth, and one copy thereof. If married, divorced, or widowed, marriage certificate, divorce decree, or death certificate of your spouse, and one copy thereof. In case the applicant's last name in your birth certificate and in your passport is not the same, provide proof on how you changed your name. It might be necessary to make a name declaration. Confirmation of deregistration ("Abmeldebescheinigung") from the German place of residence if it is entered in the current passport as the place of residence, and one copy thereof. Valid residency permit, and one copy thereof. Your driver's license or a utility bill in your name as proof of legal address, and one copy thereof. The applicant's German doctorate certificate if they would like to have your German doctorate degree entered in your passport, and one copy thereof If applicable, German naturalisation document, and one copy thereof Passport fee The applicant's Family Register Extract may be needed. If it is the first time the applicant's apply as an adult you will need your parents' German passports or a Certificate of Nationality ("Staatsangehörigkeitsausweis").
RFID chip with biometric certificate Since 1 November 2005, German passports have had a contactless smartcard (proximity card) chip and 13.56 MHz loop antenna embedded into the front cover page,, page 8 in accordance with ICAO standards. The chip and antenna are not easily visually recognisable, but their presence is indicated using the ICAO biometric passport symbol at the bottom of the front cover. It carries all the data printed in the passport, including a JPEG file of the photo, protected by a digital signature. Germany therefore became only the fifth country in the world (after Malaysia, Thailand, Sweden, and Australia) to introduce biometric passports.
On 1 November 2007, several changes were made to the passport: Applicants have to provide, in addition to the traditional passport data, scans of two fingerprints, which are added to the chip. The previously 9-digit, all-numeric, sequentially assigned serial number was replaced with a new alphanumeric pseudorandomly assigned higher-entropy serial number, to increase the entropy of the serial number from the previous 35 digits to 45 bits.Dennis Kügler, BSI, talk at CeBIT 2008 This improves the cryptographic key strength of the Basic Access Control mechanism of the RFID chip by 10 bits, which makes a brute force attack approximately 1000 times more expensive. The validity period of passports issued to holders under the age of 24 increases from five to six years; older applicants receive a passport valid for ten years.
Different spellings of the same name within the same document German names: German names containing umlauts (ä, ö, ü) and/or ß are spelled in the correct way in the non-machine-readable zone of the passport, but with AE, OE, UE, and/or SS in the machine-readable zone, e.g. Müller becomes MUELLER, Groß becomes GROSS, and Gößmann becomes GOESSMANN. The transcription mentioned above is generally used for aircraft tickets etc., but sometimes (like in US visas) also simple vowels are used (MULLER, GOSSMANN), so passport, visa, and aircraft ticket may display different spellings of the same name. The three possible spelling variants of the same name (e.g. Müller / Mueller / Muller) in different documents sometimes lead to confusion, and the use of two different spellings within the same document may give persons unfamiliar with German orthography the impression that the document is a forgery.