Checking a foreign passport for validity: where and how to carry out the procedure

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A passport is a person's main document. Checking the validity of a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation may be necessary in a variety of situations - both when checking the reliability of a partner under a contract and other transactions, and in the course of resolving ordinary everyday issues.

Checking the validity of a citizen’s passport can be done in several ways, but for maximum reliability you should use all of them whenever possible.

Checking on an external resource

The first method is very simple - the passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation can be checked online on the official website of the Federal Migration Service of Russia. According to current legislation, anonymized citizen data (deemed invalid) ceases to be protected by the law on the protection of personal data and is distributed in the public domain.

Go to the website - https://guvm.mvd.ru

To check, you need to go to the “ Services ” menu and select “ Check against the list of invalid Russian passports ”. Next we perform the following algorithm:

Enter the passport series
Enter your passport number
Enter the captcha before the request

Then click the “Send request” button. Previously, for verification it was necessary to enter the date of issue of the document, but now this item has been abolished.

It is necessary to understand that this resource will not provide the citizen’s complete passport data, but will only indicate whether the passport is invalid or not.

On the website you can also find the current list of invalid documents and check the attached data against it. According to the Federal Migration Service, lists of invalid passports are updated daily automatically, but the absence of a document in the list of invalid passports cannot provide a guarantee.

In addition to the official website, there are many resources on the Internet that allow you to check the validity of a document, but resource databases are taken from official sources and may not be updated for a long period, so there is no reason to trust these resources.

What can scammers do with your passport data?

Which Russian passport can be considered illegal and why?

How to check the authenticity of a Russian citizen's passport?
You can check the authenticity of your passport on our website online by filling out the form below.

Check the authenticity of your passport online on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation

Today, passport identification is available on the website of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, in the section “Checking against the list of invalid Russian passports.” The service is available to any citizen provided he has access to the Internet.

For confidentiality purposes, the service is designed in such a way that you will not be able to view a citizen’s passport data by entering his full name. It provides the ability to check documents for their absence in the register of invalid ones (including lost and stolen).

In order to use the online passport authentication service on the official website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, you must correctly enter the passport data (series and number) in the form fields that open. Next, the system will prompt you to enter a “captcha” (symbols from the picture under the form fields), after which you will receive a one-word answer regarding the authenticity of the passport.

The list of invalid passports is updated on the website daily and is available for integration into any information systems. Once again, I would like to note that the information obtained on the site is for reference only and cannot guarantee a high degree of protection against fraudsters. Don’t be alarmed if the service responds that your passport is invalid, you can send a request for a manual re-check and adjustment of the passport database.

Statement

Application
In addition to online verification, you can find out the validity or invalidity of a passport by contacting the relevant FMS authority. To do this, you must submit a written application, which requires the following information:

Full name of the authority to which the document is submitted
Full name, address and other contact details of the applicant. The applicant can be absolutely any citizen, not just the passport holder
The text of the application itself, which indicates the requirement to provide data regarding the validity/invalidity of the passport
Date, signature

The law does not put forward any special requirements for the application; the document must be drawn up in simple written form. A sample application can be found on the Internet or directly at the FMS office.

The application (or request, as it may often be called) is reviewed by employees within a standard one-month period, after which the applicant will be provided with the relevant information.

It should be understood that even the absence of a passport in the invalid FMS database does not provide a complete guarantee. For example, the applicant forgot or simply did not have time to submit the appropriate application for the loss of the document.

Self check

Self-check
If possible, you should check your passport yourself. First of all, it is necessary to pay attention to the external distinctive features of the document.

All passport sheets must be made on Gosznak paper and have the following characteristics:

In ultraviolet light, the passport contains wavy inscriptions: “FMS of Russia” along all pages, and for passports issued before 2006 - the inscription “Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia”. In the first case, the inscription must necessarily appear on the citizen’s photograph; in the second case, this factor may not be observed.
On the third page of the passport, large inscriptions “Passport” and “Russia”, as well as a large stamp of the state, should appear under ultraviolet light.
All information in the passport must be entered typewritten, with the exception of data regarding registration and information about a previously issued passport, which can be entered manually by the Federal Migration Service.
A corresponding pattern appears around the photo in the passport in ultraviolet light, regardless of the year the document was issued.
All pages of the passport must be stitched with a special thread placed under the cover. This type of firmware does not allow individual pages of a document to be replaced without leaving a trace. You should also pay attention to the shade of the pages - in the original document, all sheets must have an identical tone.
The ink used when printing data should not fade or smear, so a fake document can be distinguished by unreadable or low-quality inscriptions.

How to check the validity of a passport at the Federal Migration Service

Check the readiness of a visa to Bulgaria
Please note! To check the authenticity and validity of a document, there are many ways, the most convenient of them is checking via the Internet, but before that it is better to simply inspect the passport externally.

Like banknotes, document pages are impregnated with protective ink against various methods of deleting records.

External signs of document invalidity

You can check the reality yourself, paying attention to the possibility of counterfeiting. Primary details that invalid documents have, what you need to pay attention to:

The pages are uneven, protruding beyond the edges of the others, the series and number are different;
It is important to look at the photograph, it may be pasted, it is better to compare it with your passport;
The presence of the “Subject to exchange” stamp immediately makes it clear that the document has already been inspected and is invalid;
Not every page has a RF watermark;
Laminar film is very difficult to remove from a photograph and also has a watermark;
Under the photo on a white field there is information about the owner;
If the registration indicates that its owner was discharged from the registration address at a certain period of time, then most likely the person was convicted.

This information will help determine the authenticity of a Russian citizen’s document. But you should still be careful and pay attention to the quality of the document and its design.

Important! In addition to online services, you can find out about the document at the nearest FMS center, where you need to send an application with the following content: full name of the authority where the application is being submitted, full name of the applicant, text about the requirement to provide data, date and signature.

How to check whether a Russian citizen’s passport is valid by series and number online

The delay in updating the database reaches one to two weeks

There are many sites on the Internet where you can check online; such portals are becoming larger and more popular every day. But not all sites are safe, so it is better to use official government resources, for example the website of the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, State Services or the Federal Migration Service. Checking your passport on the website is not much different from the service of the Main Department of Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

How to check on the GUMVD website

If you use the website of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, you need to follow just a few steps:

Go to the state website of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs;
Go to the section “Checking against the list of invalid Russian passports”;
Find the Citizenship and Migration page for detailed information;
At the bottom of the page there are fields in which you need to indicate the series and number of the passport;
Fill out the captcha and send the request;
The user will receive a positive result if the specified passport is not on the invalid list.

On the GUMVD website you can download a reference list of invalid documents. In order to check the validity of your passport, you need to go to the GUMVD website and select “Useful services”. Next, go to the migration service section. In the list, click “Check against the list of invalid Russian passports” and enter the series and number of the passport into the fields for verification, where you will then need to enter a captcha and then send a request.

Important! The information obtained in this way will not be official according to the legislation on the protection of personal data.

Entered data

Entered data
In addition to external signs, the passport should also be checked for compliance with the data entered into it.

Currently, Russian Federation passports of the 1997 model are valid. Until 2006, they were issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, after - by the Federal Migration Service of the Russian Federation; the document did not undergo any external differences during this period.

On the main spread, you need to pay attention to the number, in what region the document was issued, and whether the citizen’s age corresponds to the passport age.
The registration page cannot provide any important information, since a citizen may be registered at an address different from his actual one. Similarly, the page regarding marriage and the presence of children will not provide any information about validity/invalidity, since on these pages, even if the passport is valid, the relevant FMS body may not have affixed a stamp.
The last page contains information about the previously issued passport. It is necessary to pay attention to the code of the previously issued passport. If it is already a new template, then there is a possibility that the document was previously lost and it may be on the wanted list.

Why might a foreign passport be considered invalid?

Checking the validity of a foreign passport should be carried out taking into account the requirements of not only Russian legislation, but also the laws of the country being visited.

It often happens that a document that is relevant in the Russian Federation is not accepted by foreign consulates. This can lead to problems with obtaining a visa and leaving.

Requirements of Russian legislation

The initial check of a Russian foreign passport is carried out on the basis of the provisions of Government Decree No. 298 of March 14, 1997.

According to them, a foreign passport loses its relevance if :

the validity period indicated on the first page has expired;
there is obvious physical damage to the form;
the form does not contain required details/marks;
there are extraneous inscriptions and drawings on the form;
The owner’s personal data does not match those indicated in the passport.

If any of the above reasons are present, the passport must be replaced.

Requirements of foreign legislation

Before checking your international passport for authenticity at the Federal Migration Service or online, you need to clarify the requirements for it in the country you are visiting.

Two parameters require special attention:

passport validity period;
number of free pages.

Thus, to obtain a visa to the Schengen countries, it is necessary that at least 3 months remain before the expiration date of the passport indicated in the document.

US visas are issued only to citizens whose passport will be valid for at least six months. Other states have similar requirements.

The following video briefly explains the validity period of a foreign passport for different countries:

For unimpeded movement between countries, it is necessary that your passport has at least 2 free pages .

Non-resident passport verification

Checking a non-resident's passport
A popular question is whether it is possible to check the validity of a passport of a person who is not a citizen of the Russian Federation (for example, people from the CIS countries). The FMS does not have such data, so it is impossible to find out this information, including even regarding foreigners temporarily staying in the territory of the Russian Federation. However, most countries have their own online resources for checking the documents of their citizens.

In addition, passports of citizens of other countries often have similar security features, such as watermarks, inscriptions readable in ultraviolet light, laminated seals, security firmware, etc. Therefore, you can check your passport yourself using the signs described above.

In some countries, the possibility of obtaining electronic passports has recently been introduced, which practically eliminates the possibility of counterfeiting them.

Methods for checking an old-style passport

You can carry out the initial verification of the document yourself.

A simple inspection will show whether there is damage or extraneous notes on the passport, whether all the details are in place, and whether the legal expiration date has expired.

Then you can move on to more serious control methods.

Online check

You can check the validity of a foreign passport by number in 2020 only on the official website of the migration service.

The algorithm of actions will be as follows:

go to the main page of the resource;
click on the banner “Checking invalid foreign passports...”;
enter the series and document number on a new page;
enter the captcha;
Click “Send request”.

The result will be given within 2-5 minutes .

Personal appeal to the Federal Migration Service

Checking a foreign passport for validity through the office of the Federal Migration Service of Russia will be useful for those who need written confirmation of the relevance of the document.

It is carried out exclusively upon a written application from the passport holder and takes 30 days .

Based on the results, the citizen will receive a notification from the FMS, certified by the seal and signature of his head.

Such a document may be useful in legal proceedings.

How to check a biometric passport?

to check the validity of a biometric passport online .

Owners of such documents will have to submit a request for verification to the migration service in person and wait 30 days for a response.