Identify card, home made for travel

[Northern jock]

A lot of countries I've travelled or worked in require you to carry your passport at all times. If I have somewhere secure to store it, I prefer not to carry mine. So, I came up with the idea of making a good quality colour photocopy of the data page of my passport, credit card size.

I then laminated it, on the reverse side it depends on country. For Russia it was company contact numbers, for Iran it was the Embassy, for travelling in reasonable places, next of kin numbers, etc.

I've been asked many times for ID and it has worked every time. I realise you're not supposed to photocopy your passport but, it works.

It's even worked in the UK when I was asked for ID in a bank and the teller said she didn't realise you could get an ID card, she would now apply.

It also means if someone decides to confiscate your passport, you don't lose the real thing.

 

[Posh Pete]

Good idea Alistair. I'll be doing that before my next foreign trip. I did a quick check and it seems the FCO approves of your plan. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/passports-where-do-you-keep-yours Unless the advice has changed since 2015!

 

[wessie]

Good idea Alistair. I'll be doing that before my next foreign trip. I did a quick check and it seems the FCO approves of your plan. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/passports-where-do-you-keep-yours Unless the advice has changed since 2015!

I was about to post that taking a copy of your passport is not frowned upon. I was asked to do this very thing this week to claim my LGPS pension. My solicitor also took a copy as proof of ID when selling my house.

I keep a photo on my phone and in Dropbox just in case I lose my paper document when abroad.

 

[Northern jock]

I keep a photo on my phone and in Dropbox just in case I lose my paper document when abroad.

That's the point I'm making, I've tried showing a photo on my phone of a passport to an official and it's been refused. The "fake" ID card is taken as an authentic document. Depends where you go obviously but if you can have an easy way out, it's worth it.

The photo of the detail is good for getting a replacement.

 

[wessie]

That's the point I'm making, I've tried showing a photo on my phone of a passport to an official and it's been refused. The "fake" ID card is taken as an authentic document. Depends where you go obviously but if you can have an easy way out, it's worth it.

The photo of the detail is good for getting a replacement.

I'm not paranoid about carrying my passport. Jacket pocket if on the bike and I tend to wear light walking trousers off the bike as they roll up small. These have a zipped thigh pocket ideal for a passport, an emergency 20 euro note and the spare credit card.

 

[Northern jock]

I'm not paranoid about carrying my passport. Jacket pocket if on the bike and I tend to wear light walking trousers off the bike as they roll up small. These have a zipped thigh pocket ideal for a passport, an emergency 20 euro note and the spare credit card.

Great. It's only a suggestion, particularly for 3rd world countries. Nothing to do with paranoia.

This isn't the pub.

 

[theoneandonly]

I'm not paranoid about carrying my passport. Jacket pocket if on the bike and I tend to wear light walking trousers off the bike as they roll up small. These have a zipped thigh pocket ideal for a passport, an emergency 20 euro note and the spare credit card.

i have an emergency , please send me your 20 euro note ......

 

[Wapping]

I have a greater emergency, please send me your trousers!

 

[brut33]

.....your boots and your motorcycle.

 

[wessie]

i have an emergency , please send me your 20 euro note ......

access denied

 

[wessie]

I have a greater emergency, please send me your trousers!

that wouldn't be the first time a UKGSer has removed my trousers...

 

[oblertone]

There was a thread here regarding official credit card sized passports

 

[Wapping]

It would make perfect sense for the UK to adopt a credit card sized version of our passport, similar to a driving licence or the Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) that many of us carry when abroad.

Given that the border check into and out of our nearest neighbours (ie the EU) will be changing in the near future, it would save time and money to have a bank style ‘chip and pin’ card for a border official to just swipe on entry and exit.

That we should, as responsible Western civilised 21st century citizens, be allowed free borderless crossings (as enjoyed by 448,000,000 citizens, from the top of Finland to the toe of Italy, without the sun refusing to rise in the east or set in the west) goes without saying.

 

[The Other PaulG]

I was not aware of that, what changes are coming?

 

[Wapping]

I was not aware of that, what changes are coming?

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/the-eu-entry-exit-system-and-eu-travel-authorisation-system/

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

A lot of countries I've travelled or worked in require you to carry your passport at all times. If I have somewhere secure to store it, I prefer not to carry mine. So, I came up with the idea of making a good quality colour photocopy of the data page of my passport, credit card size.

I then laminated it, on the reverse side it depends on country. For Russia it was company contact numbers, for Iran it was the Embassy, for travelling in reasonable places, next of kin numbers, etc.

I've been asked many times for ID and it has worked every time. I realise you're not supposed to photocopy your passport but, it works.

It's even worked in the UK when I was asked for ID in a bank and the teller said she didn't realise you could get an ID card, she would now apply.

It also means if someone decides to confiscate your passport, you don't lose the real thing.

I did similar by scanning my passport and reducing the size then scanned my driving licence, trimmed the two pieces of pape, put them back to back and laminated them thinking I was being really clever. I was still sent back to my hotel to collect my passport on one job when they insisted on passport ID before issuing their own security card

It still gives me a paper copy of them which isn’t a bad thing for minimal effort.

 

[er-minio]

Use your driving license as ID.

Nobody really cares in Europe if you have a proper ID on you.
Worse case scenario: you go back to the hotel, fish out your passport locked on the safe (if that is your thing) and present it to the authorities’ nearest station.

I’m “European”, never carried/carry ID with me unless I’m driving a vehicle, then just driving license.

 

[er-minio]

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/the-eu-entry-exit-system-and-eu-travel-authorisation-system/

The gift that keeps giving

 

[Monsieur]

Use your driving license as ID.

Nobody really cares in Europe if you have a proper ID on you.

Polizei chap in Berlin certainly wanted to see more than my non-eu driving licence last year. Luckily had my passport in my waist bag for his perusal.

 

[er-minio]

Yes, but worse case scenario you would have to go and present your ID (and pay a small fine sometimes) at a police station.

I assume that if one is traveling from one location to another on their steed, their passports will be in the luggage with them on the back of the bike at least.

BTW, in the UK I've seen people showing their passport picture on the phone (age checks and the like) lately.
I've done it lately to get into a club* in central London as I have a digital copy of my passport archived on my phone for other reasons.


*I'm 42 and with a full gray beard WTF