Iraqi passport law: issue, renewal, loss and travel bans

In briefPassports Law No. 32 of 2015 sets four passport types issued by the Passports Directorate. Every Iraqi receives an individual passport, and no one may hold more than one valid passport of the same type, under articles 2 and 3. An Iraqi aged eighteen or over is entitled to a passport, a minor may be issued one with the consent of the guardian, and the Personal Status Court hears the request if the guardian is absent, under article 5. Anyone who loses or damages a passport must report it under article 9.

The passport is the document through which an Iraqi exercises the freedom of movement guaranteed by article 44 of the Constitution, inside and outside Iraq. Questions about it come up in three situations: first issue, renewal when the validity or pages run out, and replacement after loss or damage. Added to these are passports for minors when one parent is absent, and travel bans. The office of lawyer Ali Barakat in Baghdad sets out here what Passports Law No. 32 of 2015 says.

The documents the law recognises

The first article distinguishes three documents: the passport, issued by the state to an Iraqi for travel abroad and return; the pass, issued to an Iraqi who loses a passport outside Iraq and to a foreign national who loses a passport in Iraq where the home state has no mission; and the travel document, issued for travel or return in exceptional circumstances.

The second article sets four passport types, including the ordinary passport, attaches the Passports Directorate to the Ministry of Interior, and makes it responsible for issuing passports of every type.

One passport per person, and only one valid

The third article sets basic rules:

Each Iraqi receives an individual passport to which no one may be added, carrying the holder's photograph and personal data.
Where the civil record has no surname, the third name is used as the surname in the passport, and the holder's children may use it as their surname in their own passports.
No person may be issued more than one valid passport of the same type.
No one may leave Iraq without a passport, pass or travel document issued under the law, subject to defined exceptions.

Because passport data is taken from the civil record, an error in a name or date of birth is corrected in the record first; see the national card: issue and correction.

Iraqis abroad

The fourth article requires the competent official at Iraqi embassies and missions to issue, renew or extend passports for Iraqis outside Iraq, whatever the reason for their presence there.

Passports for minors

The fifth article provides that an Iraqi aged eighteen or over is entitled to a passport, and that a passport may be issued to a younger person with the consent of the guardian. If the guardian is absent, the competent Personal Status Court or Personal Matters Court hears the request. Guardianship is covered on removing a guardian.

Loss and damage

The ninth article requires an Iraqi who loses or damages a passport inside Iraq to report it to the Passports Directorate, one of its provincial offices or the nearest police station, and requires a person who loses it abroad to report it to the competent official at the mission. The directorate cancels lost or damaged passports, and the Director General issues a new passport for a first loss once the legal requirements are met. The law attaches heavier consequences to repeated loss or damage, and gives a person who loses a passport abroad for the second time a pass to return.

Cancellation

Article 12 lists the cases in which a passport is cancelled: where it is established that the Iraqi has renounced nationality or had it withdrawn, where the passport is lost after its details have been circulated, and where its validity has expired or its pages are used up. The last case is the basis of ordinary renewal.

Travel bans

The sixth article bars issuing a passport to an Iraqi subject to a final court judgment banning travel until the ban is lifted by the body that issued it. Article 12 allows a passport holder to be stopped from leaving if there is a court decision banning travel. Article 14 provides that if a passport officer is satisfied that a person has committed a punishable offence, the officer must stop that person from travelling and refer the matter to the competent investigative judge within twenty-four hours.

Passport offences

Article 15 penalises buying or selling a passport, damaging it in bad faith, leaving Iraq after being notified of a travel ban, and entering or leaving other than through designated points. Article 16 penalises trying to obtain a passport while holding a valid one of the same type, or providing information contrary to the law. Under article 18 no new passport is issued to someone convicted under those articles for the duration of the sentence.

Legal basis and sources

Frequently asked questions

Can one parent obtain a child's passport without the other?

The consent of the guardian is required under the fifth article, and the Personal Status Court hears the request where the guardian is absent.

What should I do if I lose my passport abroad?

Report it to the competent official at the Iraqi mission under the ninth article; a new passport or a pass may be issued depending on the case.

Is the passport cancelled if the holder renounces nationality?

Yes, under article 12; see loss and renunciation of nationality.

Always check the text in force and its amendments in the official source.

To ask about your matter

Call +964 770 848 7526 WhatsApp Email

The Iraqi passport: issue, renewal and damaged passports