A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid and protection, and obtain consular assistance from their government. In addition to facilitating travel, passports are a key mechanism for border security and regulating migration; they may also serve as official identification for various domestic purposes.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is the ministry of foreign affairs and a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom.
British National (Overseas), abbreviated BN(O), is a class of British nationality associated with the former colony of Hong Kong. The status was acquired through voluntary registration by individuals with a connection to the territory who had been British Dependent Territories citizens (BDTCs) before the handover to China in 1997. Registration for BN(O) status was limited to the 10-year period preceding the transfer as a transitional arrangement for former BDTCs; current residents cannot newly acquire this nationality.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport is a passport issued only to permanent residents of Hong Kong who also hold Chinese citizenship. In accordance with the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, since the handover in 1997, the passport has been issued by the Immigration Department of the Government of Hong Kong under the authorisation of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China. As the official languages of Hong Kong are Chinese and English, the passport is printed bilingually in both Chinese and English. In addition, unlike Chinese passport which can be issued by Chinese diplomatic missions abroad, the Immigration Department of Hong Kong is the only issuing authority for HKSAR passports.
The British passport is a travel document issued by the United Kingdom or other British dependencies and territories to individuals holding any form of British nationality. It grants the bearer international passage in accordance with visa requirements and serves as proof of citizenship. It also facilitates access to consular assistance from British embassies around the world. Passports are issued using royal prerogative, which is exercised by His Majesty's Government; this means that the grant of a passport is a privilege, not a right, and may be withdrawn in some circumstances. British citizen passports have been issued in the UK by His Majesty's Passport Office, an agency of the Home Office, since 2014. All passports issued in the UK since 2006 have been biometric.
A Commonwealth citizen is a citizen of a Commonwealth of Nations member state. Most member countries generally do not treat citizens of other Commonwealth states any differently from foreign nationals, but do grant limited citizenship rights to resident Commonwealth citizens. For example, in 14 member states, resident non-local Commonwealth citizens are eligible to vote in elections. The status is most significant in the United Kingdom, and carries few or no privileges in many other Commonwealth countries.
United States passports are passports issued to citizens and non-citizen nationals of the United States of America. They are issued exclusively by the U.S. Department of State. Besides passports, limited-use passport cards are issued subject to the same requirements. It is unlawful for US citizens and nationals to enter or exit the country without a valid US passport or passport-replacement document compliant with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, though there are many exceptions; waivers are generally granted for U.S. citizens returning without a passport, and the exit requirement is not enforced. As of June 2024, a United States passport allows visa-free travel to 189 countries and territories, being ranked as the twenty eighth most powerful in the world in terms of travel freedom.
An Australian passport is a travel document issued by the Commonwealth of Australia to individuals holding any form of Australian nationality. It grants the bearer international passage in accordance with visa requirements and serves as both a form of identification and proof of Australian citizenship. It also facilitates access to consular assistance from Australian embassies around the world. Passports are issued in accordance with the Australian Passports Act 2005 by the Australian Passport Office, an agency of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). As of July 2024, Australian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 188 countries and territories, ranking the passport eighth in the world for travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index.
The Israeli passport is the travel document issued to citizens of the State of Israel for the purpose of international travel. It grants the bearer visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 170 countries and territories, where they are entitled to the protection of Israeli consular officials.
New Zealand passports are issued to New Zealand citizens for the purpose of international travel by the Department of Internal Affairs. New Zealand has a passport possession rate of around 70% of the population and there are around 2.9 million New Zealand passports in circulation.
Japanese passports are issued to Japanese nationals to facilitate international travel. From 2018 to 2022, it was ranked first on the Henley Passport Index for visa-free travel, and second as of July 2024, with holders able to travel visa-free to 194 countries and territories.
A Belgian passport is a travel document issued by Belgium to Belgian citizens to facilitate international travel. It grants the bearer international passage in accordance with visa requirements and serves as proof of citizenship.
The European Union itself does not issue ordinary passports, but ordinary passport booklets issued by its 27 member states share a common format. This common format features a colored cover emblazoned—in the official language(s) of the issuing country —with the title "European Union", followed by the name(s) of the member state, the heraldic "Arms" of the State concerned, the word "PASSPORT", together with the biometric passport symbol at the bottom center of the front cover.
North Macedonian passport are issued to citizens of North Macedonia for the purpose of international travel. Responsibility for their issuance lies with the Ministry of the Interior. The validity of the passport is 5 years for persons 4 to 27 years of age and 10 years for those 27 years of age and older. For children ages four and under, the validity of the passport is limited to two years. The passports conform to the recommended standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and are biometric passports.
Visitors to Montenegro must obtain a visa from one of the Montenegrin diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries. Visa policy is regulated by Regulation on Visa Regime Act. Where there are no diplomatic or consular representations of Montenegro, visa requiring foreigners may obtain them from diplomatic or consular representations of Serbia, Bulgaria and Croatia.
The British National (Overseas) passport, commonly referred to as the BN(O) passport, is a British passport for people with British National (Overseas) status. BN(O) status was created in 1987 after the enactment of Hong Kong Act 1985, whose holders are permanent residents of Hong Kong who were British Overseas Territories citizens until 30 June 1997 and had registered as BN(O)s.
The visa policy of the United Kingdom is the policy by which His Majesty's Government determines visa requirements for visitors to the United Kingdom and those seeking to work, study or reside there. The visa policy of the UK also applies to the Crown dependencies of Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man, which each operate their own immigration enforcement and have separate work permit systems. The visa policy does not apply to any of the British Overseas Territories, who generally apply their own visa policies.
Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) is a form of permanent residency available to people of Indian origin and their spouses which allows them to live and work in India indefinitely. It allows the cardholders a lifetime entry to the country along with benefits such as being able to own land and make other investments in the country.
The Australian Document of Identity (DOI) is a travel document issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to Australian citizens and some Commonwealth citizens in specific and rare circumstances. It is not intended to be a broadly used identity document in Australia, nor does it generally provide evidence of citizenship or residency.
The British Certificate of Travel (COT) is an international travel document and a type of Home Office travel document issued by the UK Home Office to non-citizen residents of the United Kingdom who are unable to obtain a national passport or other conventional travel documents. Until 17 March 2008, the Certificate of Travel was called a Certificate of Identity (CID). It is usually valid for five years, or if the holder only has temporary permission to stay in the United Kingdom, the validity will be identical to the length of stay permitted.
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