Syrian Passport | |
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Type | Passport |
Issued by | Syria Ministry of Interior, Directorate of Immigration and Passports |
First issued | 1929 (first version) 21 August 2023 (biometric) [1] |
Purpose | Identification, proof of citizenship |
Eligibility | Syrian citizenship |
Expiration | 6 years [2] |
The Syrian passport [a] is a travel document issued by Syria's Directorate of Immigration and Passports to Syrian citizens for international travel. [1] It can also be issued on behalf of the directorate at various Syrian diplomatic missions outside of Syria.
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In late 2016, Syria's Department of Immigration and Passports announced that it is planning to change to biometric passports. [3] In early 2019, Syria's Interior Minister announced that the country is getting ready to release its new passport. [4] In August 2023, Syria officially introduced the biometric passport, which notably dropped the usage of the French Language and kept Arabic and English. [1]
In April 2015, Syria changed its passport requirements so that Syrians outside Syria, including refugees who have fled the Syrian Civil War, are eligible for passports without having to go through a review by the intelligence services. Passports will be issued to Syrians "even if they left in an illegal manner or they hold non-official passports or travel documents", likely referring to passports issued by Syrian opposition representatives in Qatar. [5]
However, the government was also criticized for increasing fees and limiting the ease of obtaining passports for Syrians abroad throughout the war, with costs going from less than US$20 in Syria to hundreds or even a thousand dollars needed to renew a passport in Turkey between official fees and corruption. This was seen as a way to obtain foreign currency reserves and fund al-Assad's administration. [6] [7] Consular revenues increased from 0.4% of government income in 2010 to 5.4% in 2023. Some countries supplied Syrian refugees with a certificate of identity or a refugee travel document due to the issues with getting a new passport. [8]
Syrian passports include the following data on the information page:
The information page ends with the machine readable zone.
The items are identified by text in Arabic and English (e.g., "تاريخ الولادة / Date of birth")
The passports contain inside the front cover a note that is addressed to the authorities of all countries and territories, identifying the bearer as a citizen of Syria and requesting that he or she be allowed to pass and be treated according to international norms:
In Arabic:
In English:
Ordinary passports are issued to Syrian citizens. They are navy blue, with the Syrian Coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover.
The words "الجمهورية العربية السورية" and "SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC" are centred on the top, and the words "جواز سفر" and "PASSPORT" are centred on the bottom, with the biometric passport symbol positioned below them.
Diplomatic passports are burgundy, with the Syrian Coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover.
The words "الجمهورية العربية السورية" and "SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC" are centred on the top, and the words "جواز سفر دبلوماسي" and "DIPLOMATIC PASSPORT" are centred on the bottom, with the biometric passport symbol positioned below them.
They are issued to the following categories and granted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates (Protocols Department):
A - Prime Minister and other ministers
B - Speaker of the People's Assembly and his deputy
C - Members of the diplomatic and consular corps and members of missions of Syria to international organizations.
D -Technical attaches of various ranks to diplomatic missions abroad
E - Diplomatic baggage holders
F - Members delegated from the Syrian Arab Republic to the main organs of the United Nations and the International Court of Justice during the performance of their mission
G- Former foreign ministers
H- Wives, minor children, and unmarried daughters of members of the categories mentioned.
Diplomatic lose their value when the holder arrives in Syrian territory, since the diplomatic passport loses its immunity when its holder arrives in the country that granted him the diplomatic passport.
Special passports are brown, with the Syrian Coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover.
The words "الجمهورية العربية السورية" and "SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC" are centred on the top, and the words "جواز سفر خاص" and "SPECIAL PASSPORT" are centred on the bottom, with the biometric passport symbol positioned below them.
They are issued to the following categories and granted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates (Protocols Department):
A - Governors of the Syrian governorates.
B - Employees working at the level of Undersecretary and above and their equivalents.
C - Members of the People's Assembly.
D - Former ambassadors and ministers.
E - Syrian employees in the League of Arab States who are considered members of diplomatic missions during their official movements.
F - Administrative and clerical employees attached to diplomatic missions and missions of Syrian to international organizations
G- Wives of Category (A) individuals and their minor children
H- Wives of members of other categories and their minor children traveling with them.
Special passports lose their value when the holder arrives in Syrian territory, since the special passport loses its immunity when its holder arrives in the country that granted him the special passport.
Service passports, also called Mission passports, are green, with the Syrian Coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover.
The words "الجمهورية العربية السورية" and "SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC" are centred on the top, and the words "جواز سفر مهمة" and "SERVICE PASSPORT" are centred on the bottom, with the biometric passport symbol positioned below them.
They are issued to the following categories and granted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates (Protocols Department):
State employees dispatched on an official mission abroad, such as conferences, meetings, exhibitions, and international bodies other than those mentioned above, based on a request from the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The passport for a mission ends as soon as the mission is completed, and its holder arrives in Syrian territory.
A Hajj passport is issued to citizens wishing to perform Hajj. It is valid for travel once and expires after arriving back in Syrian territory. It is granted by the Ministry of Interior (Immigration and Passports Directorate) in coordination with the Ministry of Endowments (Directorate of Hajj and Umrah).
Maritime passports are issued to ship sailors by the Ministry of Transport (Maritime Inspection Department).
Air passports are issued to the aircraft command authority by the Ministry of Transport (General Corporation of Civil Aviation).
The Syrian government also issues two types of travel documents:
An ordinary Syrian passport contains 48 pages, each two of them (excluding the first three and the last one, which include governmental notations and the holder's information) have a Syrian landmark.
Coat of arms of the Syrian Arab Republic
Holder's Information
Citadel of Aleppo, Aleppo Governorate
Umayyad Mosque, Damascus Governorate
Jabar Citadel, Raqqa Governorate
Busra Amphitheatre, Daraa Governorate
Deir ez-Zor Suspension Bridge, Deir ez-Zor Governorate
Citadel of Salah ed-Din, Latakia Governorate
Hama Waterwheels, Hama Governorate
Palmyra Theatre, Homs Governorate
Al-Marqab Citadel, Tartus Governorate
Convent of Saint Thecla, Rif Dimashq Governorate
Ain Diwar Bridge, Al-Hasakah Governorate
Gothic Church of Qalb Lozeh, Idlib Governorate
Nimrod Fortress, Quneitra Governorate [b]
Qanawat, As-Suwayda Governorate
October War Panorama, Rif Dimashq Governorate
Souq Al-Hamidiyah, Damascus Governorate
Euphrates Dam, Raqqa Governorate
Krak des Chevaliers, Homs Governorate
Afamia, Hama Governorate
Saint Simon Citadel, Aleppo Governorate
Martyrs' Monument, Rif Dimashq Governorate
Citadel of Damascus, Damascus Governorate
As of 2024, Syrian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 29 countries and territories, ranking the Syrian passport 105th in the world which is the second least powerful passport in the world, only behind Afghanistan, according to the Henley Passport Index. [9]
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.
Croatian passport is issued to citizens of the Republic of Croatia for the purpose of international travel. The passport has the purpose of serving as proof of Croatian citizenship and identity. Responsibility for their issuance lies with the Ministry of the Interior; and for citizens abroad, passports are issued by the local embassy or consulate. Croatian passports are valid for ten or five years, and are not renewable. Every Croatian 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 Economic Area and Switzerland.
Egyptian passports are issued to nationals of Egypt for the purpose of international travel. Besides serving as a proof of Egyptian citizenship, they facilitate the process of securing assistance from Egyptian consular officials abroad if needed. Egyptian passports are valid for seven years for adults, and is issued for lesser periods for school or college students, or those who have not finalized their status of the military conscription. Starting in 2008, The Egyptian government introduced newer machine-readable passport (MRP), in order to comply with international passport standards and requirements with 96.7% conformance to ICAO Document 9303. The newer passports offer better security and state-of-the-art anti forging parameters and have a soft cover.
Latvian passports are issued to citizens of Latvia for identity and international travel purposes. Receiving a valid passport is mandatory from the age of 15, but passports can be requested for younger children if needed for travel and other purposes. A passport is valid for 10 years if the citizen is 20 or older, for 5 years if 5–20 and for 2 years if 0–5 years old. Non-citizen passports, and refugee travel documents, are also issued. Every Latvian citizen is also a citizen of the European Union. The passport, along with the national identity card, allows Latvian citizens to travel and to have rights of free movement and rights to reside in any states of the European Union, European Economic Area and Switzerland.
A Moldovan passport is an international document issued to citizens of the Republic of Moldova for the purpose of international travel. The passport is issued by the Public Services Agency and by Moldovan foreign representations abroad. The passport is valid for ten years. For children under the age of seven years it is valid for four years. Since 1 January 2006, Moldovan citizens can hold two passports simultaneously, providing a written request has been submitted to local passport office.
The North Macedonian passport is 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.
The Tunisian passport is issued to citizens of Tunisia for international travel.
The Saudi passport is a passport document issued to citizens of Saudi Arabia for international travel.
The Lebanese passport is a passport issued to the citizens of the Republic of Lebanon to enable them to travel outside the Republic of Lebanon and entitles the bearer to the protection from the diplomatic missions and consulates of the Republic of Lebanon if necessary. It is issued exclusively by the Lebanese Directorate General of General Security (DGGS), and can also be issued at various Lebanese diplomatic missions and/or consulates outside of the Republic of Lebanon. It allows the bearer a freedom of living in the Republic of Lebanon without any immigration requirements, participate in the Lebanese political system, entry to and exit from the Republic of Lebanon through any port, travel to and from other countries in accordance with visa requirements, facilitates the process of securing consular assistance abroad from the diplomatic missions and consulates of the Republic of Lebanon if necessary, and requests protection for the bearer while abroad.
Antiguan and Barbudan passports are issued to nationals of Antigua and Barbuda for international travel. The passport is a CARICOM passport as Antigua and Barbuda is a member of the Caribbean Community.
The Kuwaiti passport is a passport document issued to citizens of Kuwait for international travel.
The Emirati passport is a travel document issued by the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to individuals holding any form of Emirati nationality. It grants the bearer international passage in accordance with visa requirements and serves as proof of UAE citizenship. It also facilitates access to consular assistance from the UAE embassies around the world.
The Bahraini passport are passports issued to Bahraini citizens for the purpose of international travel. They are issued by the Ministry of Interior.
The Omani passport are passports issued by Oman to Omani citizens for international travel. Omani passports are issued by the Royal Oman Police or at an Omani Embassy overseas.
The Sudanese passport is issued to citizens of Sudan for international travel.
The Tanzanian passport is issued to citizens of the United Republic of Tanzania for international travel. The Immigration Department is responsible for the issuance of Passports for the purpose of international travel.
The Palestinian Authority Passport is a passport/travel document issued since April 1995 by the Palestinian Authority to Palestinian residents of the Palestinian territories for the purpose of international travel.
The Somaliland passport is the passport issued to citizens of the unrecognized country of Somaliland for international travel. A passport was issued for the first time in 1996, and a biometric passport was in 2014, in line with new global standards and the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization.
Visitors to Syria must obtain an e-Visa in advance, unless they are a national of a visa-exempt country or a country whose citizens are eligible to obtain visas on arrival. Visitors can obtain a visa from one of the Syrian diplomatic missions.
The Syrian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur is the official diplomatic mission to represent Syria in Malaysia. It provides the consulate services to all Syrian citizens and those equivalents including who are in Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, Taiwan, and Brunei. And it is one of the 64 diplomatic missions of the Syrian Arab Republic around the world.
Member State of the Arab League |
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