Topic Drift - Please Let's Get back on Topic
 

We are experiencing serious topic drift.

The subject of this thread is:
We have other active threads discussing passport cards, intra-European travel passport checks, etc.

Please get back on topic!

Thank you,

TWA884
Travel Safety/Security co-moderator

It will be interesting to see if we maintain a signature field in the passport to be filled in after the passport has been issued. Many countries have switched the process so as to make sure the signature is captured and printed onto passport blanks before the passport is delivered to the passport applicant.

Once that takes place for US passports, my guess is that we start getting closer to that being done for US passport cards too.

While googling info about the new US passport, I came across a State Dept page that said the new US passport will be produced in the US, just like the current the US passport.

My memory may be a little fuzzy, but I remember reading something about the current US passport being produced in a foreign country.(Thailand or somewhere near that area?)

Maybe my wallet was weird, but the sleeve in which I kept my card fell apart first... then the second sleeve that I ordered online. After that, I stopped caring if the card was inside the sleeve or not. Finally, the card itself gave way :-)
​​​​ Actually, the front of the card still looks perfect, it's the back top layer that peeled off.

Just read the mod's message. Will not digress from the subject anymore.

The DMV departments across the country had this technology for several decades, so I don't see why the State Dept shouldn't implement it as well.

Historically, US passports have not been produced with signatures so the State Dept. has not collected signatures for use in production of passports. Passport cards are relatively new so they had no way of collecting a signature for use on them without changing procedures. If the US goes the way of other countries in the new passport such that the signature appears as part of the data page it will have to change those procedures. At that point I'd guess that b:pth the passport books and passport cards will have signatures. I guess we'll see.

Well, historically other countries too have not produced their passports with signatures ;) I guess it's only in the past 20-25 years that some countries started to print signatures in the passports. But I agree that the State Dept simply did not have the right technology because they never collected the signatures at the time of applications in the past. Personally, I don't think they will start printing signatures in the passport bio page no matter how secure they will make the page itself. It would be too progressive for our federal government, I would even say too radical :)

Is there any security value to signatures in passports? I've been asked to give fingerprints and photos on border crossings, but I've never been asked to sign a signature pad for comparison or any other reason.

No - I've never had anyone compare my signature to anything To me the :only reason for it is to give people a hard time when they have failed to sign. I understand airlines are fined in some countries when passengers reach passport control without signing. Hopefully the new US passports will address this. We shall see.

When the sig capture+print captured sig for passports is implemented by a country, it has sometimes come with other changes; for example, how the passports' signature field gets used when it comes to passports for young minors. This doesn't necessarily have to change with a new passport design implementation, but I see the traditional "sig field completed after passport issuance" as facing its mortality with US passports eventually.

I've seen siignature comparisons against signatures in passports used before, but it's not something most people will experience or even observe. Having a sig capture+sig print in passport prior to delivering the issued passport to the passport appplicant would be security of sorts for some in some ways. But for ordinary border control purposes where the passports enable biometric-based control using FRT, the signature really doesn't do a whole lot toward that. So it shouldn't be a surprise that sig capture+sig print technology implementation to make more "secure" US passports isn't all that high a priority as some other changes.

For those who may have emergency passport issuance needs abroad, this new passport design implementation -- with or without sig capture+sig print -- may come with some more problems than is currently the case.

I just noticed that this thread was started more than 3 years ago. :(

did they abandon plans to introduce this new, more secured US passport? :confused:

Provided it's for travel rather than identity or citizenship proof purposes, there are already international arrangements that should negate that in the form of Emergency Travel Documents - any consulate or embassy should be able to give you a certified letter which will entitle you to travel for a brief period of time - enough to be able to produce the new passport anyway.

Other countries producing "secure" biometric passports (I can speak only for NZ at this stage as my uncle has had to take advantage of the emergency issuance process before) can generally produce and courier a passport in less than 24 hours, and with overnight international couriers (which the government passes the cost onto you of utilising) they can generally have a passport in your hands late next day if they have to. I wouldn't worry too much about emergency issuance as a potential issue.

A temporary travel document need not be exactly the same as the regular one, and can be less secure and require an on-the-spot signature. Am I right? The only country that requires biometric passports is, IINM, the US, and as a US passport holder this is a moot point.

A temporary travel document is basically just a letter saying "please let this person travel" in appropriate diplomat speak. It's only really intended to act in place of a passport long enough to get a passport manufactured. Not to be confused with alien passports and other similar travel authorisations issued to non-citizens - but that would be off topic.

Doubtful. The new $100 bill was over three years late from its intended introduction due to issues making it reliably, this is probably the same.