Any File wrote:
It may be useful to add, on all revelant page like travel, visa, etc. a big notice to remeber to check the validity of the passport and to advise to request it, if needed, as soon as possible.
On 5/23/06, Florence Devouard anthere@wikimedia.org wrote:
The biometric passport is finally available in
Are you speking of the passport whit the digital photo? (actually the photo is actually a paper photo that is digitalized and printed as digital photo, not a photo directly taken in digital). This is what is required to enter in U.S. (who has a visa can use a passport without the digital photo. Passport iussed before October 26, 2005 may still have not the digital photo, but if the passpart was renewed after that date, it can not be used without the digital photo).
Biometric passport is a different thing. A passport with a chip inside in which many personal informations (not only hight, colour of eyes, but also a photograph and fingerstamps, etc) will be registered.
I finally figured all that stuff. My passport if from 2003, so is valid to enter the USA. What is not valid, is my son. I will come with him. He does not have a passport of course. A passport offers only two slots for kids; Then, the children area is covered by plastic and no more kids may be added. So, I thought that to add my son, I had to have a *new* passport. What I did not realise at all, is that biometric passport are per individual. So, the kids can not be added on passports any more, they have their own passport. Consequently, I can keep my old one, but need a biometric one for my son. An invitation letter for a baby is probably not gonna be very convincing, so I do not need that anymore (we'll add a letter to the request to try to explain the urgency).
What I find funny are the identity picture recommandation. The background should be neutral (no hands should be visible). The person head must be a certain size. The person must have eyes looking in the front (not up, not down, not on the sides). The person must not be sagging. Not smiling. Eyes should be open, and mouth closed.
Now, just TRY to do that on a baby who is not yet really able to keep his head straight and sucks two fingers all day long !
/me wondering over US government paranoia /me wondering over French government absolute disability to handle tough issues within decent deadlines, whilst all other european countries manage.
Alas, French is not the only country to have such problem. In Italy the situation is similar or worse. And I belive that in many other countries the situation is similar, and it is surely going worse and worse as summer is approaching.
At least you have not to pay a 40.29 eur stamp every year on the passport (which is lost if you have to change the passoprt because someoneelse choose that you have to change the type of you passport)
(well, I have never undestood why all the countries should change their passport because of the willing of just one country. This is the reason why the other countries are not ready: because they were not the one who choose to have the passports in this way).
I urge anyone neededing a new passport, to request it as soon as possible.
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Sigh.
Ant