Sudan: Requirements and procedures to obtain a Sudanese passport, including business passports; information on appearance and security features; information on the prevalence of fraudulent passports (2015-2017)

Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa

1. Overview

According to a 2015 case study document on electronic passports in Sudan, published by HJP Consulting, a company that "provided [c]onsulting and [p]roject [m]anagement [s]ervices for the planning, procurement, testing and implementation of the Sudanese [electronic] passport project" (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015a), electronic passports have been in place since 25 November 2008, after a migration from hand-written passports to electronic-passports (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015b, 5-6).

A 2012 article by the National, a newspaper published in the United Arab Emirates, cites the Sudanese Ambassador in Dubai as stating that Sudanese electronic passports were introduced in 2009 (The National 5 Aug. 2012). According to the same source,

[t]here are three versions of the new electronic passport: a citizen's passport containing 48 pages and valid for five years, a commercial passport for frequent travellers containing 64 pages and valid for seven years and a 32-page passport issued to children. (The National 5 Aug. 2012)

The 2012 article by the National further reports that, due to "problems [that] have delayed their availability at embassies around the world," new electronic passports will be issued in September 2012 for the first time outside Sudan, at the Sudanese consulate in Dubai (The National 5 Aug. 2012). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

2. Requirements and Procedures

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a lawyer in Khartoum, specialized in the Sudanese legal system, confirmed that the the Passport Division of the Sudanese Ministry of Interior handles the issuance of Sudanese passports in Sudan, and that Sudanese embassies handle this abroad (Lawyer 12 July 2017).

The 2015 document by HJP Consulting indicates that there are 18 sites in Sudan and 25 embassies abroad for "[e]nrolment" of electronic passports (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015b, 7). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

A 2016 report on Sudan by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) states that applicants for Sudanese passports "must present their birth certificate, national identity card and provide a guarantor confirming their identity" (Australia 27 Apr. 2016, 27).

The website of the Sudanese embassy in Ottawa provides the following requirements for "new passport[s]":

Filled-out [a]pplication [f]orms signed by the applicant

1. Include with your application a [c]opy of your Canadian [p]ermanent [r]esidence [c]ard or a [c]opy of your Canadian [p]assport
2. For [s]tudents: Original letter from [u]niversity/ [s]chool verifying full time student status to be exempted from national contribution tax.
3. For housewives: Copy of marriage certificate must be presented if the occupation on the passport is not indicated as a housewife.
4. Fees for students [are]: $30.00, and $67.00 for non-students.
5. National contribution [f]or [p]rofessional is $690 dollars
6. National [c]ontribution for [b]usinessman is $2000 dollars
7. For lost or stolen passports the following should be presented to the embassy: (A) an original police report(s). (B) A copy of old passport OR a copy of nationality certificate.
8. Four (4) photographs. Muslim women need to wear TARHA [1].

PASSPORT RENEWAL REQUIREMENTS

1. Include with your application a [c]opy of your Canadian [p]ermanent [r]esidence [c]ard or a [c]opy of your Canadian [p]assport
2. Passport should be renewed every two years for a period not exceeding 10 years.
3. Filled-out [a]pplication [f]orm signed by the applicant(s).
4. For [s]tudents: Original letter from [u]niversity/[s]chool verifying full time student status to be exempted from national tax.
5. For housewives: Copy of marriage certificate must be presented if the occupation on the passport is not indicated as a housewife.
6. Fees: for students $19.00, non-student $37.00
7. One (1) photograph. Muslim women need to wear TARHA. (Sudan n.d.a, emphasis in the original)

The same source also provides the following "new requirements to issue a new Sudanese passport":

[translation]

1. For a passport that completed the full validity period, 10 years, the following is required:
   
   
   1. The original passport, if possible
   2. The original receipt
   3. 3 photos
   4. Clear and legible detailed address in Sudan
   5. If there is a change in the profession of date of birth, please provide supporting documents
      
      
2. For a lost passport (replacement):
   
   
   1. Original citizenship certificate
   2. Certificate of [l]ost [p]assport from the state where the applicant resides
   3. 3 photos
   4. Original receipt
   5. The applicant should appear in person before you to take an oath and swear that the information included in the form is accurate (passport application form)
   6. Clear and legible detailed address in Sudan
   7. If the citizenship certificate is in Sudan, the applicant should contact his family and meet with the Passport Office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (Sudan n.d.b, emphasis in the original)
      

According to the 2012 article by the National, the new passports will cost approximately 295 Emirati Dirhams [approximately C$104] for adults and 145 Emirati Dirhams [approximately C$51] for students (The National 5 Aug. 2012).

3. Appearance

Information on appearance of Sudanese passports was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

The 2015 document by HJP Consulting provides the following description of the booklet of the electronic passport:

1. 48 pages
2. Intaglio / rainbow printing
3. OVI [optically variable ink] + latent image
4. Conical laser perforation. (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015b, 6)

The lawyer explained that the latest Sudanese passport is of a "dark blue colour" while the previous one was green, and that "all the information [is] on the first page" while it was "in many pages" in the previous version (Lawyer 12 July 2017). A copy of an electronic passport specimen "since 25 November 2008" provided in the 2015 document by HJP Consulting is attached to this Response.

4. Security Features and Fraudulent Passports

Information on security features and the prevalence of fraudulent passports was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

Sources indicate that the passports introduced in 2009 contain a [micro]chip with the holder's information (The National5 Aug. 2012; Australia 27 Apr. 2016, 27). The 2015 document by HJP Consulting explains that the chip "in cover" of the electronic passport contains biometrics of facial features, as well as PA [passive authentication] and BAC [basic access control] (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015b, 6). According to the same source, the electronic passport has PC [polycarbonate] datapage with multi laser image and transparent kinegram (HJP Consulting 9 June 2015b, 6).

The 2016 document by the Australian DFAT explains the following:

[S]ome older-style passports are still in circulation. Older-style passports contain limited security features, are usually hand-written and include details of the holder's dependents. … DFAT is aware of examples of the older-style passports being fraudulently altered, usually in an unsophisticated and easy to detect manner. (Australia 27 Apr. 2016, 27)

Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

According to an article published in 2015 by the Sudan Tribune, a non-profit website based in Paris that aims to "promote plural information, democratic and free debate on Sudan" (Sudan Tribune n.d.), the Sudanese Ministry of Interior announced on 5 November 2015 that "all hand-written passports will be nullified effective November 25th after which only machine-readable passports (MRPs) will be accepted" (Sudan Tribune 5 Nov. 2015). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

A 2017 article by Sudan Vision, a Sudanese daily newspaper, reports the arrest by the National Security and Intelligence Service of a "gang involved in forgery of money, identity documents and university certificates" (Sudan Vision[Jan. 2017]). According to the same source, a "source at the National Security and Intelligence Service" said that forged passports, birth certificates and national IDs were found during the arrest (Sudan Vision [Jan. 2017]). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Note

[1] According to a 2009 article by Agence France-Presse (AFP), the tarha is a traditionnal Sudanese veil covering the head and the shoulders (AFP 8 Sept. 2009).

References

Agence France-Presse (AFP). 8 September 2009. "Soudan: la journaliste condamnée pour port du pantalon veut 'continuer le combat'." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Australia. 26 April 2016. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). "Sudan." DFAT Country Information Report. [Accessed 30 June 2017]

HJP Consulting. 9 June 2015a. "Certified e-Passport Testing in Demand - Sudan Case Study." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

HJP Consulting. 9 June 2015b. Kwthar Hassan Ali and Markus Hartmann. Certified ePassport Testing in Demand - Case Study Sudan. [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Lawyer, Karthoum. 12 July 2017. Correpondence with the Research Directorate.

The National. 5 August 2012. Awad Mustafa. "Electronic Passport Relief for Thousands of Sudanese Expatriates." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Sudan. N.d.b. Embassy in Ottawa. " Passport Services." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Sudan. N.d.a. Embassy in Ottawa. "New Requirements to Issue a New Sudanese Passport." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Sudan Tribune. 5 November 2015. "Sudan's Hand-Written Passports to Be Nullified on November 25th." [Accessed 12 July 2017]

Sudan Tribune. N.d. "About." [Accessed 12 July 2017].

Sudan Vision. [January 2017]. "NISS Arrests Gang Involved in Counterfeit Money and Identity Documents." [Accessed 30 June 2017]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Kushite Integrated Company; Sudan – Embassy in Ottawa, Embassy in Washington, DC.

Internet sites, including: ecoi.net; European Union – Public Register of Authentic Travel and Identity Documents Online; Factiva; Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'homme; Human Rights Watch; Keesing's Document Checker; United Nations – Refworld.

Attachment

HJP Consulting. 9 June 2015b. Kwthar Hassan Ali and Markus Hartmann. Certified ePassport Testing in Demand - Case Study Sudan. [Accessed 30 June 2017]