The new passport will cost 50 euros, unchanged from the old price, and should be ready within around a week. Those seeking the fast-track procedure to receive a new passport within three days will continue to pay 150 euros for the service. Applications for the new 10-year passport can be submitted at municipal councils or at the capital’s passport office from 11 May onwards.
Authorities were particularly engaged in strengthening security measures for the new passport. “We have tried to have something on every page to make life as difficult as possible for forgeries,” foreign minister Xavier Bettel declared at the presentation this week. Watermarks have been embedded into the cover and the individual pages, and the pages are no longer identical, but have different motifs, such as the Gëlle Fra, the Chamber of Deputies, or a silhouette of Luxembourg City. Passport photos will be printed in colour and the back cover will bear the Luxembourg coat of arms.
Every year, Luxembourg issues between 50,000 and 60,000 new passports. Around 40% are fast-track applications. The high demand is attributed to increased travel, but also a higher number of applications from abroad submitted by so-called new Luxembourgers. Last year, there were 2,516 applications from Brazil, 1,608 from the USA and 489 from the UK. Currently the Luxembourgish diaspora is made up of around 157,000 Luxembourgers, or 30% of the total number of Luxembourgish passport holders.
The foreign minister explained that a Luxembourgish passport was very popular and belonged to the top 5 passports worldwide, due to the low number of visas required outside the EU. A Luxembourg passport holder can travel to over 170 countries, including new additions China, Vietnam and Mongolia.
The extension of the passport validity period is a boon to the public and to administrators alike, Bettel said, as it would reduce the workload for the passport office. The majority of passport applications are received by municipal councils, followed by the ministry and embassies.
