North Macedonian passport

Passports are issued to citizens of North Macedonia (until February 2019 the Republic of Macedonia) for the purpose of international travel. Responsibility for their issuance lies with the Ministry of the Interior. The validity of the passport is 5 years for persons 4 to 27 years of age, and 10 years for those 27 years of age and older. For children ages four and under the validity of the passport is limited to two years. The passports conform to the recommended standards (size, composition, layout, technology) of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and are biometric passports.

North Macedonian passport
The front cover of a Macedonian biometric passport prior to the name change in 2019 (passport comes in Macedonian, English, and French).
First page of a pre-2019 Macedonian biometric passport
TypePassport
Issued by North Macedonia
PurposeIdentification
EligibilityMacedonian citizenship
Expiration5 years for persons 4 years of age to 27; 10 years for those 27 years of age and older; 2 years for children under the age of 4.

History
Macedonian passports (pre-2019) through the years: First generation Macedonian passport (post independence) (top left), second generation (top right), third generation (bottom left), and fourth generation passport (bottom right).
Stamp added to old-design North Macedonian passports since 2019, displaying the newly accepted name in Macedonian, English and French

From 1945 to 1991, when Macedonia was a constituent republic of Yugoslavia, Macedonians traveled with Yugoslav passports. Under the Yugoslav federal system, each republic had its own variety of passport; in particular, Yugoslav passports issued in SR Macedonia were printed in Macedonian and French, rather than in Serbo-Croatian.[1]

The first post-independence Macedonian passports were issued in 1991. The design and contents changed over the years. The first generation passports were blue with a silver color inscription without an emblem. The second generation of Macedonian passports had a golden inscription on the cover and the third generation had the national coat of arms added. The first three generations had only "Република Мaкедонија" and the English translation "Republic of Macedonia" inscribed on the cover page. The fourth generation passport became red with the French translation of the official country name, "République de Macédoine", added above and "Passeport" below the coat of arms. It was a biometric passport which contained a RFID chip, enabling the storage of biometric and other retrievable data. Previously issued, non-biometric passports remain valid until their stated dates of expiration.

Effective 16 November 2009, the five-pointed red star that had been part of the national coat of arms was removed from the emblem.

After the Prespa Agreement ending the naming dispute with Greece coming in effect in February 2019, passports were stamped with the country's new name as an interim measure before new passports were issued. The trilingual stamp states “This passport is property of the Republic of North Macedonia” in English, French, and Macedonian.[2] The authorities are to begin issuing the passports with the new country name starting from September 2020. Old name passports will remain valid until early 2024.[3]

Physical appearance

Passports of North Macedonia are red in colour with the national coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover. The words "Република Северна Македонија", optionally followed by the Albanian version "Republika e Maqedonisë së Veriut", as well as the English "Republic of North Macedonia" and the French "République de Macédoine du Nord" are inscribed above the coat of arms. The words "Пасош", "PASAPORTË", "PASSPORT", and "PASSEPORT" are inscribed below. The passports have the standard biometric symbol at the bottom of the cover page. They contain 32 pages, with the critical information both printed on the data page and stored in the chip.

Data page and signature page

Each passport has a data page. A data page has a visual zone and a machine-readable zone. The visual zone has a digitized photograph of the passport holder, data about the passport, and data about the passport holder:

  • Photograph
  • Type [of document, which is "P" for "passport"]
  • Code [of the issuing country, which is "MKD" for "REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA"]
  • Passport No.
  • Surname (Macedonian Cyrillic Transcription with ICAO Standardized Transcription/Translation underneath)
  • Given Name(s)
  • Nationality: македонско/граѓанин на Република Северна Македонија, Macedonian/citizen of the Republic of North Macedonia
  • Date of Birth (Date/Month/Year Format)
  • Unique Master Citizen Number (EMBG)
  • Sex
  • Place of Birth
  • Date of Issue
  • Issuing Authority [which is “MBP/MOI” – Ministry of Interior]
  • Date of Expiration
  • Holder’s Signature
  • Permanent Residence

At the bottom of a data page is the machine-readable zone, which can be read both visually and by an optical scanner. The machine-readable zone consists of two lines. There are no blank spaces in either line. A space which does not contain a letter or a number is filled with "<". The first line of a machine-readable zone of a passport contains a letter to denote the type of travel document ("P" for passport), the code for the citizenship of the passport holder (e.g., "MKD" for "North Macedonia"), and the name (surname first, then given name or names) of the passport holder.

The second line of a machine-readable zone of a passport contains the passport number, supplemented by a check digit; the code of the issuing country ("MKD" for "North Macedonia"); the date of birth of the passport holder (two digit year, two digit month, two digit day i.e. 020507), supplemented by a check digit; a notation of the sex of the passport holder ("M" or "F"); the date of expiration of the passport, supplemented by a check digit; the holder’s personal number and, at the end of the line, two overall check digits. The data page has a line for the signature of a passport holder. The non-biometric passports of the first three generations were not valid until they were signed by the holder. If a holder was unable to sign, it was to be signed by a person who had the legal authority to sign on their behalf. The new biometric passports only require a signature made with a digital pen on a tablet on the day of application, after which the image of the signature is printed on the first page along with the other data, and cannot be altered thereafter.

Types of Passports
  • Regular (Ordinary) Passport - Issuable to all citizens of North Macedonia. It has a red color and is valid for two, five, or ten years depending on the age of the passport applicant/holder. These passports are not extendable or renewable and a new one must be obtained once expired.
  • Diplomatic Passport - Issuable to diplomats accredited overseas and their eligible dependants, and to citizens who reside in North Macedonia and travel abroad for diplomatic work. Title and function of the bearer (Diplomat) is listed on the data page in addition to the information already contained. It is valid for five years.
  • Official Passport – Issuable to government employees assigned overseas, government employees working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or at a diplomatic mission abroad. An official passport can also be issued to other government officials that are to travel abroad, with prior approval, as well as to their spouses and children living in the same household. Title and function of the bearer (Official) is listed on the data page of the Official Passport in addition to the information already contained. It is valid for five years.
  • Temporary Passport - Issuable to citizens who need to return to the country from abroad and have extenuating circumstances such as a lost or stolen passport; when issued it is valid for 30 days or until the return trip is completed. It can be issued at an embassy or consulate abroad.

Documents required

The following documents are required to obtain a passport:

  • Passport Application Form (Obtained from the MOI or downloaded from their website)
  • Valid State Issued ID (If citizen resides abroad, he/she needs to submit the foreign ID in order to prove identity)
  • Old passport (if applicable, regardless of expiry date)
  • 50 MKD (€0.82) Administrative Stamp
  • 1500 MKD (€24.50) Processing Fee (4500 MKD (€73.50) for Expedited processing – usually passport requests are processed and completed in 48 hours, and can only be picked up in Skopje, in the police station in the MRTV building)
  • Administrative tax Receipt (50 MKD for children 4 and under; 250 MKD (€4) for persons between the ages of 4 and 27 and 500 MKD (€8) for persons ages 27 and older).
  • Picture, fingerprints, and all biometric data are collected at the Passport Application Centre(s); fingerprint data is not collected from minors ages 12 and under.

Visa requirements
Main article: Visa requirements for citizens of North Macedonia
Visa requirements for citizens of North Macedonia
  North Macedonia
  Visa free access
  Visa on arrival
  eVisa
  Visa available both on arrival or online
  Visa-free with voucher or letter of invitation
  Visa-free with public affairs endorsement
  Visa required

As of May 2018, North Macedonia's citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 125 countries and territories, ranking the passport of North Macedonia 41st in terms of travel freedom (tied with Colombian, Marshallese and Tuvaluan) according to the Henley visa restrictions index.[4]

  • Macedonian biometric passport issued to citizens of Albanian descent

See also

Sources

References
  1. Shaw, Jo; Štiks, Igor, eds. (2013), Citizenship After Yugoslavia, Routledge, p. 21, ISBN 1317967070
  2. "Police stamp passports with country's new name 'North Macedonia'". 16 February 2019.
  3. "Пасоши со „Северна" од септември, сегашните ќе важат до 2024-та". Радио Слободна Европа. 7 February 2020.
  4. "Global Ranking - Visa Restriction Index 2018" (PDF). Henley & Partners. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
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