Passport

When travelling abroad, you and your children generally need a passport. In many European countries, however, the federal identity card is recognised as a substitute for a passport.

Passports, eID cards and ID cards are produced by Bundesdruckerei in Berlin. The production time may vary, even if you have applied for the documents on the same day. The delivery time for a passport is around 4-7 weeks. However, we accept no liability for delivery times as these depend on the Bundesdruckerei.

Express passport
An express passport must be applied for if there is not enough time between the application and the intended journey to obtain a regular passport from the Bundesdruckerei.

Express passport orders received by the Bundesdruckerei by 12:00 noon on working days (Monday to Friday) will be delivered to the authority by 12:00 noon on the following 3rd working day at the latest. If the delivery falls on a public holiday in a federal state, delivery will be made on the following working day.

Please note: Please bear in mind possible waiting times when visiting the Citizens' Office to ensure that the data is transmitted to the Federal Printing Office on time. The processing time on site also takes a few minutes.

New regulation on digital passport photos

From May 2025, passport photos mayonly be taken digitally. From May 2025, digital passport photos can be taken directly by a professional photographer or in the citizens' offices. Printed passport photos will no longer be accepted from 1 May 2025. The Federal Ministry of the Interior wants to prevent manipulation in this way.

If your old passport has been stolen or lost, report the loss to the Citizens' Office or the police as soon as possible. When using identity documents that were once reported as lost or stolen, the Foreign Office would like to point out that even if the identity documents have since been reported as "found" again, this does not automatically lead to the deletion of the loss entry in the Interpol file. It therefore happens time and again that the foreign border police confiscate such identity documents. In such cases, it is recommended to apply for a new passport.

The consent of both parents or legal guardians is required for applications from young people under the age of 18 (see downloads). At least one parent or guardian must be present when the application is made. Representation is not possible.

Status enquiry

You can also check the status of your passport under Online status enquiry. If your document is not yet ready for collection, you can enter an e-mail address. This information will enable us to contact you as soon as the document can be collected.

Personal documents for marriage:

If you change your name on the occasion of your marriage, it is possible to order new identity documents in good time before the date of the ceremony.
When applying for the new documents, please bring a certificate from the registry office confirming your future name. You can apply for a passport with the certificate of future name use at the earliest 8 weeks before the date of the marriage.

New features for direct shipping of passports

Direct delivery for ID cards / eID cards is possible from the 16th birthday, for passports from the 18th birthday. You can have the ID documents handed over to you in person at your front door. The prerequisite is that you submit the ID card application within Germany to the authority at your place of residence. The direct delivery service costs €15.00 in addition to the ID card fee.

For direct shipping, you will need another valid ID document (ID card or passport) to identify yourself when receiving the shipment, as the old ID will be confiscated and or cancelled upon application.

The delivery service, Deutsche Post AG, will inform you of the expected delivery date by e-mail. The consignment will only be handed over to you personally . Before handing over the consignment, you must identify yourself to the postal delivery service with a valid identity document (ID card, passport). If you are not at home at the time of delivery, the consignment will be deposited at a post office for seven working days. If you do not collect the consignment within this period, it will be forwarded to your local authority. The ID document will be kept there until you collect it. The fee cannot be refunded.

Direct dispatch is not possible for ID documents applied for using the express order procedure. Dispatch to a preferred address or to a secondary residence is not possible. Reason:
If the consignment cannot be delivered and is not collected from the branch, it will always be returned to the authority at your main place of residence.

Deutsche Post will only hand over the consignment with the ID document. Old ID cards are neither cancelled nor accepted for return to the authorities.