Passport issuance to go online; Kuwait first in service
In a move by the Ministry of Interior to facilitate Kuwaiti citizens and shorten the time and effort, the method of obtaining Kuwaiti passport will be the same as that of the driver’s license – via automation – and its renewal will also follow the same steps as that for renewal of driver’s license. This will enable citizens to submit their request electronically on the website of the Ministry of Interior, and then visit the nearest issuance machine to obtain their passport.
Kuwait will thus be the first Arab country to implement this service for its citizens, reports Al-Rai daily. Director General of the Directorate General for Citizenship and Passport Affairs Major General Sheikh Fawaz Al-Khaled explained that the self-service machines for electronically handing over citizens’ passports are distributed in a number of national identity centers in all governorates to facilitate citizens and ensure the elimination of congestion in the office of the Directorate General for Citizenship and Passport Affairs.
He said, “There is a tendency to allocate a special counter for travelers at the Kuwait International Airport. Through this counter, passports will be issued to citizens if they realize that their passports are not valid, or if the pages of their passports are all filled. This service is provided only to holders of boarding passes who have ample time at the airport to ensure that their travel is not disrupted.
These modern devices are present in Kuwait and a few other Asian and European countries. We are the first Arab country to use such a machine, which carries a high rate of confidentiality, security and accuracy, considering the fact that a passport is considered one of the important documents in the country. Also, since the beginning of the phase of changing the old passports to the new version that contains an electronic chip, no case of forgery has been detected.
This is an achievement for the State of Kuwait.” Meanwhile, Director of Travel Documents Department Colonel Abdullah Al- Amhoj said, “At present, 12 machines have been allocated through which the electronic passports are issued, after their renewal through the website of the Ministry of Interior in a process that takes only a few minutes. The citizen will then receive a message via Sahel app which will indicate the
location of the machine and its number. He can then decide whether to receive it from the national identity centers in his respective governorate or from the office of Directorate General for Citizenship and Passport Affairs in Dajeej area.
He said, “There is a tendency to allocate a special counter for travelers at the Kuwait International Airport. Through this counter, passports will be issued to citizens if they realize that their passports are not valid, or if the pages of their passports are all filled. This service is provided only to holders of boarding passes who have ample time at the airport to ensure that their travel is not disrupted.
These modern devices are present in Kuwait and a few other Asian and European countries. We are the first Arab country to use such a machine, which carries a high rate of confidentiality, security and accuracy, considering the fact that a passport is considered one of the important documents in the country. Also, since the beginning of the phase of changing the old passports to the new version that contains an electronic chip, no case of forgery has been detected.
This is an achievement for the State of Kuwait.” Meanwhile, Director of Travel Documents Department Colonel Abdullah Al- Amhoj said, “At present, 12 machines have been allocated through which the electronic passports are issued, after their renewal through the website of the Ministry of Interior in a process that takes only a few minutes. The citizen will then receive a message via Sahel app which will indicate the
location of the machine and its number. He can then decide whether to receive it from the national identity centers in his respective governorate or from the office of Directorate General for Citizenship and Passport Affairs in Dajeej area.