BIOMETRIC PASSPORTS ARE BEING ISSUED IN BELGIUM
The Consular Section of the British Embassy in Brussels started issuing biometric passports on 25 April 2006.
Biometric passports will help fight fraud and forgery in several different ways:
- The photo is stored on the chip.
- Facial recognition technology will help to detect fraudulent applications.
- The biometric measurements derived from a passport photo can be used to verify applications against images held on record.
Externally, the new biometric passport appear very similar to the current one, although it features a logo indicating that there is a chip inside.
However, internally there are many new security features and the pages have intricate designs and a new complex watermark. The last page of the passport holds a chip as well as the holder’s photo and personal details. The information on the chip is secured by advanced digital encryption techniques. Information on the chip cannot be amended. Any change to the printed data will be apparent when compared with the data on the chip.
The issue time for a digital passport will remain five working days, provided we receive a properly completed application form, with supporting documentation (where required), photographs ( which comply with international photo standards) and the correct fee.
Photographs
When you apply for a passport, we will be able to use your passport photograph to record your facial biometrics. Facial biometrics involves measuring the distance between key points on the face. We will digitally encode the passport photo and store it on the chip held in the passport book.
Please consult the guidance leaflet on passports for more details. Substandard photographs will be rejected by the system and will delay your application.
In addition to the guidance in the leaflet, we recommend the following:
Adults
- if you wear glasses, we strongly advise removing them when having your photo takes so as to eliminate the risk of them causing reflection or otherwise reducing the quality of the photo (e.g. rims covering the eyes)
- experience shows that very light coloured hair is a problem. A light grey (5% to 10%) background to the photo mitigates this problem
- please do not print your photograph out on your home printers as both the paper and the photo quality may not be acceptable
- please do not digitally enhance your photos either personally or through a third party / service as these processes could result in your photos being rejected. A photo that has been enhanced may not produce an image of sufficient quality to be used by facial biometric systems and could therefore result in difficulties at border controls
Children
- do not provide school photos as these are not acceptable for copyright reasons
- photographs of children: aged 5 and under
photographs must show a clear image that is a true likeness of the child. We will accept photographs of under 5’s with their mouths open, or eyes looking away from the camera. If you are having problems with getting photographs that meet all of our requirements, do the best you can – as long as the photo is of a good quality it should meet our simplified procedures for children
- photographs of children: aged 6 and over
photographs for all children over 6 must meet the full standard. The only exception is for photographs submitted of children under 11 years which may show the head size between 21 mm and 34 mm high, instead of the adult requirement of 29 mm to 34 mm high
If you have a problem …
You can telephone us on 02/287 6248 (during working hours) or 02/287 6211 (after hours). If we are busy and are unable to answer your call immediately, please leave a message.
Information is also available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website www.fco.gov.uk as well as on the UK Passport Service website www.ukps.gov.uk
You can also get in touch with us by e-mail: Consularsection.Brussels@fco.gov.uk
