Is it possible for a citizen to change his passport ahead of schedule?

Is it possible for a citizen to change his passport ahead of schedule?

Russians have access to 2 types of general foreign passports: old format and biometric. They have different expiration dates. The standard one is issued for 5 years, with an electronic storage medium - for 10 years.

Is it possible to change a passport before the expiration date of the previously issued one? Typically, a new OPP is ordered immediately before the current one expires. But the law does not prohibit citizens from applying for a document in advance, 6 or more months or years in advance.

Typically, the reasons for such an early replacement are full pages, changes in personal data, damage, etc. It is quite acceptable to request a new OPP if the owner, for example, simply wanted to make biometrics for himself instead of an old-style passport

. However, you need to remember the nuances of filling out the application form and legal restrictions.

What the law says

To travel abroad, Russians can apply for an old or new generation passport. The second contains an electronic chip on which the basic personal data of the owner is recorded: full name, age, gender, citizenship, digital image of the face and fingerprint - 2 fingers.

Is it possible to change a foreign passport earlier and how to do this, explains Federal Law No. 114 of August 15, 1996 “On the procedure for entering and leaving the Russian Federation.” The procedure, its timing and cost are described in detail in the new regulations of the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs No. 864 of November 16, 2017 and No. 889 of November 27, 2017.

None of these regulations contain the concept of “replacement” of a passport, only “registration” and “issuance” of a new one. The law also does not say when the owner is obliged to apply for a new passport if he has a valid one.

Specialists of the Main Department of Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (formerly the Federal Migration Service) only recommend doing this approximately 6 months before the expiration of the “shelf life” of the previously received OPP, taking into account their plans and the time required by government agencies to prepare the document. That is, a citizen of the Russian Federation has the right to apply for an OPP, even if the validity period of the current one is still far from expiration.

Federal Law No. 114 provides for 2 restrictions. Firstly, if a passport is lost, a new document can only be issued after the first one is declared invalid (the relevant information is entered into the police and border guard database)

. Secondly, if a citizen has 2 valid passports, obtaining a third one is impossible: one must be cancelled.

Sample passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation

Is it possible to change the international passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation ahead of schedule?

Thus, Russians have the right to change their passports ahead of schedule. At the same time, the law does not oblige citizens to explain in detail the reasons for their decision; it is enough to correctly fill out paragraphs 11 and 13 in the application.

The GUVM regulations contain an exhaustive list of reasons why a migration service officer may refuse to issue an applicant a new passport. This list does not include any unexpired previously issued OPO.

But there are the following points:

• incorrect filling out of the questionnaire (in particular, paragraphs 11 and 13);
• failure to provide a passport whose expiration date has not expired;
• incomplete package of papers.

Of all the possible reasons for early replacement of the OZP, only the change of last name, first name, patronymic or gender needs to be documented.

If a citizen has done everything in good faith, but the employee does not want to accept the application and documents, his actions can be challenged. To do this, a pre-trial claim is submitted to the head of the territorial unit of the Main Directorate for Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The easiest way is to compile it online on the EPGU portal or the migration service website. Filing a complaint is also possible through the MFC; in this case, the Center’s specialists will help you formalize it correctly.

The complaint must explain why the applicant considers the actions of the authorized employee to be unlawful. A claim for refusal to accept documents is considered within 5 working days. If the citizen’s position is considered justified, he will be invited for a second appointment.

Possible reasons

Specialists from the Russian Migration Service note several common reasons for changing your passport early:

• lack of free pages for affixing visas;
• change of personal data (name or gender);
• significant change in the owner’s appearance;
• damage (damage to the chip, cover or pages, scuffs, extraneous notes) or loss of the document.

The list is not exhaustive. There is no such reason as “wanted”, despite the fact that this is quite acceptable. The regulations of the Main Directorate for Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs do not force citizens to explain their decisions.

Another common reason for early replacement of a foreign identity card is the migration rules of the country of visit. Some of them require that the guest’s passport have an impressive “validity reserve” after the end of the trip.

In China, for example, this period is 180 days. If an applicant wants to live in the Celestial Empire for 6 months, then before entering there his OPP must be valid for at least another year.

Sample of Russian military ID

When is it necessary to change your passport?

The main reason for changing a foreign passport remains its expiration date. But there are several other factors in which replacing the foreigner becomes necessary. Here are some reasons:

• I've run out of free pages. When accepting an application and documents for a visa, consular services require at least two blank pages. In addition to the visa itself, border service stamps will be affixed there;
• a radical change in appearance. Most often, this is the desire of the document owner himself. If the face in the photograph can only be hardly identified with the face of the passport holder, then the foreigner should be replaced;
• change of first name, patronymic or last name. If this data changes, for example, upon marriage or for other reasons, the citizen is obliged to change, first of all, his Russian internal passport. But the law does not require immediate receipt of a new passport. A person can leave the country with an old document. Even if the data of the internal and foreign passport does not match, the latter will remain valid until its expiration date. But bureaucratic obstacles may arise, and to avoid them, it is better to change the foreigner too;
• damage to the document. Some situations allow you to choose whether to change your passport or not. But damage to the document is an absolute reason for replacement. When traveling, a document may fall into water, become wrinkled, pages may be torn out, and the text may become unreadable. In this case, you will need to change your passport;
• loss of document. If the document cannot be found, then it should be assumed that it is lost. In this case, you need to urgently report this to the migration service at your place of residence or place of stay. The services of the Main Department of Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs accept the statement of loss and declare the passport invalid. Then they issue a certificate of loss, which makes it possible to get a new foreign passport. If a document is lost outside Russia, a citizen must immediately notify the consulate or embassy of the Russian Federation located on the territory of this state.

This means that your passport can be changed before its expiration date. But sometimes migration officials do not want to accept applications for early replacement. To overcome obstacles, you need to indicate one of the above reasons, justifying it in writing.

One of the reasons why you need to change your passport may be a citizen’s long business trip, for which the validity period may not be sufficient. The law does not prevent you from obtaining a new passport while the old one is still valid.

But if a migration service employee does not accept the application, you should contact the head of this department to resolve the issue and restore your rights.

How the procedure works

The procedure for “replacing” a foreign passport is the same as when it was first received. The same terms, cost, and required package of documents apply.

You can submit an application:

• personally to the territorial unit of the Main Directorate for Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;
• through the MFC;
• online using the State Services portal.

When filling out the application form, you should pay special attention to points 11 and 13. In the first, you need to check the box next to the circumstances of receiving the OPP (in return or in addition to another)

. In the second, you must write the details of all valid international passports. It is necessary to indicate those that are canceled and the one that is planned to be retained.

All valid, unlost passports must be presented. They are returned to the applicant marked “Cancelled” if a new OPP is received to replace the old one.

If the reason for early replacement is a change of full name, documents confirming this must be attached to the package of basic documents (certificate from the registry office, marriage certificate, etc.).

If the reason is loss, the citizen writes an explanatory statement in free form: indicates the details of the old passport that he remembers, sets out the circumstances of the incident and a request to recognize the lost document as invalid.

The main package of documents includes:

• general passport;
• a certificate of permission from the command, if the applicant is a contract soldier or an employee of law enforcement agencies;
• military ID for men 18–27 years old.

The state fee must be paid before receiving a new OPP. It is not necessary to submit the original receipt along with other documents.

A foreign passport will cost a Russian citizen this amount without a discount (Article 333.28 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation):

Section 333.28. Amounts of state duty for performing actions

You can save 30% if you submit an application and pay the state fee through the EPGU (Article 2 of Federal Law No. 221 of July 21, 2014). The rule is valid until 01/01/2019.

Residents of the Kaliningrad region (Russians with permanent registration on its territory) are exempt from paying state duty, regardless of the place of receipt of the passport.

There are still benefits for Crimeans and Sevastopol residents if they are applying for an OPP for the first time and have a valid Ukrainian passport at the time of submitting the application.

A citizen can find out about the readiness of the document online using the services of the State Services portal or the website of the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Standard processing time:

A Russian who draws up an OPP to replace the current one receives both documents - a new one and an old one marked “Canceled.” It is impossible to cross the borders of the Russian Federation and other countries, but the consulates of almost all states, when issuing entry permits, ask for such passports to confirm the “visa history” of the applicant.

Instead of replacing the OZP with a new one, you can make yourself a second valid one. Federal Law No. 375 of December 14, 2015 amended the legislation on the rules of entry and exit outside the Russian Federation

. Now any citizen has the right to have 2 passports with different expiration dates. The second document must be biometric.

To do this, when filling out the form, you need to indicate “In addition to the current one” in clause 11, and enter its details in clause 13

. Having two passports is convenient if one of them is about to run out of blank pages for affixing visas, or you plan to enter a country that is not allowed if you have a stamp in your travel document about visiting a hostile state.

Institutions where early exchange is carried out

There are several ways to obtain or change a foreign passport:

• Collect documents and go to the territorial division of the Federal Migration Service.
• Submit an electronic application using the “Unified Portal of State Services” website.
• Visit the multifunctional provision of public services.

It is worth considering that not all migration service offices or multifunctional centers have old-style passport forms. Therefore, there will be only one choice - to agree to receive a biometric passport. The new foreign document has a longer validity period - it is issued for 10 years, and also because many countries do not require a visa for tourist trips.

What papers are needed

Employees of the Main Directorate for Migration and Migration (FMS), answering the applicants’ question “is it possible to change a foreign passport ahead of schedule?”, at the same time talk about what papers need to be provided for this. The list of required documents includes:

• Passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation.
• A receipt indicating that the state fee has been paid. The receipt form is located on the website of the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (formerly the Directorate of the Federal Migration Service).

• A foreign passport that is valid, and at the time of exchange the document ran out of blank pages or there was a need to obtain a biometric passport.
• Military personnel (except for those serving upon conscription), employees of state executive authorities must submit permission from the command. It must be completed on a special form approved by the Government of the country.
• Men between the ages of 18 and 27 are required to show a military ID, which must indicate service or ineligibility.

• Two photos 3.5x4.5 cm for a biometric passport, and three photos if you need an old-style passport.

• An application form to be filled out in two copies. You can download the form on the website of the Main Department of Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (FMS Directorate).

• A work record book or an extract from the HR department, which should reflect the work experience for the last ten years.

It is worth considering the presence of some nuances that affect the replacement of a foreign passport. In particular, when replacing a valid foreign document, the migration service officer confiscates the passport before issuing a new one.

If you have valid visas, you must write a statement asking not to take your passport. They will leave the document, only they will cut out the number and series from it and put a stamp “cancelled”.

When composing the application form, you must indicate in a special line that you have a valid passport.

Problems with replacing a passport may arise if there are more than six months left before the expiration date. In this case, GUVM (FMS) employees have the right to refuse to accept documents for passport exchange. There are two ways out:

• When submitting documents, explain the arguments and reasons why you need to exchange your passport.
• Make an appointment with the head of the department.

No difficulties arise for those who have less than 6 months left until their passport expires . In this case, you can easily replace your passport if everything is in order with the submitted documents.

Terms and payment

The time frame for replacing a passport varies. It all depends on the situation that forces a person to change his passport. Migration legislation establishes the following time periods:

• Submitting documents at the place of registration provides for the issuance of a new passport within a period of one month.
• If it is not possible to submit a document at your place of residence, then you must contact the territorial office of the Main Administration for Migration and Migration (FMS) of your actual location.
• In case of emergency receipt of a passport for surgery or treatment in a foreign country, participation in the funeral of a loved one or wedding, then the passport can be obtained within three working days. You just need to provide documentary evidence of urgent issuance.
• A period of three months has been established for checking citizens who worked with documents of national importance or information classified as “secret”. During this time, the person is checked, and then a decision is made whether or not to issue him a foreign passport.

To replace your passport, you must pay a state fee. Its size is 3.5 thousand rubles for a new passport, 2000 rubles for an old one. Payment is made by bank transfer.

The readiness status of a document can be checked in two ways:

• Through the website of the regional branch of the migration service. You need to enter data into a special electronic form.
• Make a phone call.
• Wait for an email if the paperwork was completed through the Unified State Services Portal website.

Read more: When to file a cassation appeal in a criminal case

You can learn about checking the readiness of documents at the MFC in this article. Thus, replacing a foreign passport if its validity has not yet expired is possible. You just need to comply with all regulatory requirements of the law and take into account the nuances of obtaining the document.

Having a foreign passport allows a Russian citizen to visit many countries of the world. But in order to travel without problems, you need not only to have this document with you, but also to be confident in its legitimacy. If the passport turns out to be invalid, you will need to carry out the procedure for replacing it. Let's try to figure out how and under what circumstances a foreign passport is replaced in 2019.

When is a passport replacement required?

In addition to expiration, a replacement passport is done in the following cases:

1. All pages of the document are stamped.
2. Changing the installation data, not only the last name, first name or patronymic, but also information about the date and place of birth.
3. Damage to the document, its loss, the appearance of scuffs or extraneous inscriptions, etc.

In the first case, those who often travel abroad change their passports ahead of time. Foreign law enforcement officers do not particularly “save” space on the pages; they put stamps as they please, even in the middle. The result is that the free space for new border crossing marks is quickly exhausted.

Replacing a foreign passport when changing your last name applies not only to women, but also to men. The latter may, for various reasons, take their spouse’s surname when concluding or during marriage.

Other circumstances may become clear, and the views of adults may change. Result - last name, first name or patronymic, date and place of birth and even gender change

. A foreign passport with old installation data becomes invalid.

In some cases, it is strongly recommended to replace a foreign passport if there is a significant change in the appearance of the owner of the document. If this is not done, he will have problems with identification when going through passport control.

If you do not change your passport if your appearance changes, then the border guards will have grounds for detention for 3 hours or 3 days to establish your identity. This imposes additional financial losses and more.

In what cases is it necessary to replace a document?

The reasons leading to the need to replace a foreign passport can be divided into two groups. The first includes cases when a document, due to various circumstances, loses its legal force, for example, due to:

The second group of reasons for replacing a document includes cases where the old passport formally remains valid, but replacing it can significantly make it easier for the owner to cross borders. Such cases include:

• change of name, surname or patronymic by the owner of the document (most often in connection with marriage for women);
• a radical change in appearance, when the owner of the document is difficult to identify in the photo pasted into the passport;
• lack of sufficient free pages for planned visa marks;
• Before the expiration date, you can change your passport even if the trip is planned to countries that require the passport to remain valid for a certain period after leaving them;
• replacing an old document with a new generation document with biometric data;
• other circumstances (most often the owner’s desire to hide a visit to a country before visiting a state at war with it, for example, reluctance to have a document with an Israeli visa before traveling to Iran).

Thus, there are a number of reasons that lead to the need to change your passport ahead of schedule.

Practical advice. Before applying for a visa or buying tickets to another country, we recommend checking whether there is a ban on leaving the country. You can do this quickly, safely and online using the proven service Nevylet.rf

It should be borne in mind that FMS employees under no circumstances have the right to reject an application to replace a document, and if this does happen, you should feel free to file a complaint about their actions with the department’s management.

Let's take a closer look at the most popular reasons for replacing a document.

If your passport has expired

The answer to the frequently asked question about what to do if your passport has expired depends on whether you are planning trips abroad in the near future. If you have planned a trip abroad within six months after the expiration of the document, it is worth considering the issue of replacing it. If no travel is expected in the foreseeable future, you can change it “just in case” - the laws of the Russian Federation do not oblige citizens to change their foreign passport immediately after its expiration date.

If an error has occurred

Despite the fact that at all stages of obtaining a foreign passport, FMS employees exercise strict control over the correctness of the entered data, people sometimes tend to make mistakes. Therefore, if you find an incorrect spelling of your passport data or an error in other information about yourself, you should remember that an error in the passport is grounds for replacing it. In this case, a document containing this error loses its legal force.

If there is a change of surname

The most common reason for changing a surname among Russian citizens is marriage. And although de jure the international passport remains valid in such a situation, de facto different surnames in the international passport and other documents may become a reason for additional identity verification and even denial of entry into some countries.

What documents are needed to replace a foreign passport?

In any case, whether it is a direct application to the Federal Migration Service, the MFC or through the government services portal, you will have to collect a package of documents, namely:

• passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;
• old passport, regardless of whether it is valid or not;
• photographs of the established form in the amount of 2, 3 pcs. for a new and old document;
• information about work activity.

All this is attached to the application in the form of a questionnaire. Additionally you need to submit:

1. Military ID - for males of military age.
2. Command permission - for military personnel.

In the first case, there must be notes that military service has ended or that the person has been declared unfit for military service. In the second case, permission is required not only for persons serving in the armed forces, but also in federal executive authorities.

How much does it cost to change a passport?

When replacing a foreign passport, as well as when registering, you must pay a state fee. The state fee is the main component of the cost of replacing a foreign passport.

The state duty for processing new documents for 2021 is:

1. for a biometric passport (new sample valid for 10 years) - 5,000 rubles
   for adults and
   2,500 rubles
   for children under 14 years old,
2. for an old-style international passport valid for 5 years – 2,000 rubles
   for adults and
   1,000 rubles
   for children under 14 years of age.

The price may also depend on the following factors:

• citizen's age,
• region of permanent registration in the Russian Federation,
• the urgency of issuing a passport.

Deadline for replacing a passport

You can submit documents both at your place of permanent residence and at your place of actual residence.

To avoid delaying the procedure, you must submit documents at your place of permanent registration (registration). In this case, replacement is carried out within 20-30 days.

If you apply for a replacement at the place of temporary registration or at the place of actual residence, the period increases to 3 months.

This is especially true for newlyweds who decide to spend their honeymoon on a trip abroad. Changing your international passport when changing your last name after marriage makes its own adjustments to such travel.

Change of passport at the end of the period

The passport page with personal data contains information about the date of issue of the document and the expiration date. But almost always you have to change your passport before it expires.

Consulates require that the document be valid for at least 2 months after returning to Russia from a trip abroad. This means that a change of passport must be made at least six months before its expiration date.

As soon as the document is no longer valid, you should contact the Main Migration Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs at your place of residence or registration to obtain a new passport. In case of delay and late application, no fines will be imposed, since ownership of a foreigner is a right of a citizen of the Russian Federation, and not an obligation. This means that a person decides for himself whether or not to change such a passport.

It is convenient and much faster to obtain a new foreign identity card at your place of registration than in any other place. But if this is not possible, then you can contact any migration office in any city in the country. This can also be done at the Russian consulate in any other country in the world.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to simply renew your passport. You will have to get a new document.

Is it possible to change a passport ahead of time?

Sometimes it is necessary to change a valid document. For example, its validity expires after 3-5 months, but you won’t be able to get a visa for some countries

. A valid passport will be confiscated by a migration service officer.

You can leave the document if it contains visas that have not expired. To do this, you need to additionally attach to the package a free-form application about leaving your old passport.

. The document will be returned by cutting out the number on the page with the owner’s signature and affixing o.

“Cancelled” stamp in the passport

In addition to an additional statement about a valid international passport, you must indicate in the completed application form.

Migration service employees may refuse to replace your passport if its validity expires after more than 6 months.

In this case, you will need to further explain the reason for the replacement and contact the head of the FMS body.

Urgent replacement

To replace your passport urgently before its expiration date, you need to understand that the reasons must be sufficiently compelling. These include: the need to undergo emergency treatment abroad, a severe form of the disease, or the death of a close relative, which require a hasty departure outside the Russian Federation. In such circumstances, a replacement passport will be made within three working days. It should be remembered that under other circumstances, the migration service official will refuse to promptly replace this document.

However, in some cases, our compatriots use the services of companies that undertake to make a replacement as soon as possible. As a rule, such organizations exist only in large cities of Russia, and the cost of the services they provide is impressive. In addition, there is a high probability of encountering scammers.