Bangladeshi passport
A Bangladeshi passport is a type of e-passport that is ICAO-compliant, machine-readable and biometric. It is issued by the Immigration and Passport Directorate of the Ministry of Home Affairs to eligible Bangladeshi citizens for international travel. Bangladesh is the first South Asian country to offer e-passports to all eligible citizens.
The e-passport contains an electronic microprocessor chip, which stores the passport holder's demographic and biometric information, including a ten-finger fingerprint, iris scan, face colour photograph and digital signature. The e-passport incorporates thirty-one security features, including holographic images embossed on a thin membrane layer that changes colour under light and appears moving.
The e-passport booklet is produced, printed and issued by the Immigration and Passport Directorate of the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is valid for five or ten years, depending on the applicant's age. However, a Bangladeshi passport cannot be used for travel to Israel.
The passport is issued to eligible Bangladeshi citizens by birth or direct citizenship through the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh or its foreign diplomatic missions.
Types of passports
The Government of Bangladesh now issues three types of passports: Diplomatic, Official, and Ordinary.
| Type | Description | Image | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary passport | It was issued to ordinary citizens of Bangladesh for international travel, such as for vacations, studies, business trips, etc. |  |
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| Official passport | They were issued to Bangladesh government employees, officials, and individuals representing the Bangladeshi government on official business. Many visa requirements ordinarily applicable to Bangladeshi citizens are waived for Official passport holders. |  |
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| Diplomatic passport | Diplomatic passport holders, such as Bangladeshi diplomats, top-ranking government officials, and diplomatic couriers, are granted visa-free entry to many countries. |  |
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| Special passport | Also known as the India-Bangladesh Special Passport, it was issued to Bangladeshi citizens and Indian national residents in West Bengal and the North-Eastern States only. It was valid for travelling between India and Bangladesh only. The issuance of this passport ended in 2013 due to changes in ICAO regulations. | Discontinued |
Bangladeshi passports issued since January 2020 are all biometric, machine-readable (MRP) and e-passports.