Swiss Passports to Be Issued With a New Design From October
The Federal Office of the Swiss Police (Fedpol) has announced that although the design has taken a completely different form, the functionality and performance process remains the same, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
In this regard, Fedpol pointed out that the current design of the Swiss passport is about 20 years old. Meanwhile, the last update on the design of the passport dates back to 2006, when it was adapted to the security standards of the time in order to include biometrics.
“Current security standards now make it necessary to renew the Swiss Passport family,” the Federal Police Office said.
According to Fedpol, the Swiss passport will still have its famous red cover. In addition, the 26 cantons as well as the “fifth Switzerland”, which represents Switzerland abroad, will still be represented on one of the visa pages.
Fedpol also explains that all those who wish to travel abroad do not need to apply for a new one if their older one is still valid. On the other hand, those who want a passport with the new design must make an appointment by October 31 to submit their biometric data at passport offices and responsible Swiss missions abroad.
As for the issuing procedure, it remains unchanged, and so remain the personalization and delivery of the passport procedures, which will continue to be guaranteed by the Federal Office for Building and Logistics (FOBL). In addition, it is still possible to take advantage of the combined passport and identity card offer. In this case, the offer consists of the most current version of the relevant identity documents.
Moreover, the new series of Swiss passports include the ordinary passport, the diplomatic passport, the service passport, the travel document and the passport for foreigners living in Switzerland. The emergency passport with the new design will only be introduced later and will replace the current temporary passport.
In recent years, another Schengen country that has changed its passport design is Norway. The country’s first new passports were issued on November 19, 2020.
Commenting on this decision, the Minister of Justice and Public Security Monica Mæland had said at the time that the new version of the Norwegian passport is an important measure to prevent identity-related crime in Norway.
According to the Norwegian authorities, these passports will be more difficult to forge and, at the same time, more secure.
