The Swedish Migration Agency's assessment of identity documents

Afgha­nistan

The Migration Agency considers that the lack of reliable population registration and methods of issuing identity documents continues to mean that Afghan identity documents are unable to support the holder’s identity to the extent required in cases concerning Swedish citizenship.

More information on Afghan identity documents can be found in the report (in Swedish) produced by Landinfo.

Afghanistan – Medborgarskap, folkbokföring och identitetshandlingar (version 2.0) External link, opens in new window.

Iraq

The Migration Agency is highly familiar with what authentic Iraqi documents look like. The Agency is also acquainted with the types of documents that are frequently forged.

A series G or A passport proves your identity if it was issued to you by the embassy in Stockholm (as indicated by the stamp in the passport) or if you applied for or picked it up during a trip to Iraq. You must be able to document the trip with airline tickets or in another credible manner. If you did not pick up the passport in person, you can go to the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm and get it verified.

Series S passports are easier to forge; the Migration Agency is aware that they are often issued on the basis of insufficient documentation, which means that they are less reliable. In other words, a series S passport is not sufficient in itself to prove your identity.

A passport from an earlier series may be approved if it was issued in a proper manner at the time of a personal appearance.

A certificate of identity issued by the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm does not meet the security requirements — in the view of the Migration Agency, an adequate identity check is not performed before the certificate is issued. Such a certificate is not sufficient in itself to prove your identity.

Iraqi identity cards and certificates of citizenship do not meet the security requirements, given that they have a simple design and lack verifiable security features. Thus, an identity card or certificate of citizenship cannot in itself prove your identity. 

An Iraqi military card can prove your identity under certain circumstances, provided that it was issued in a proper manner.

Somalia

Somali passports issued after January 1991 do not meet the Migration Agency's security requirements. Since January 1991, Somali has not had competent authorities that can issue legal documents. It is also well known that there is an extensive market for passports and other types of Somali documents.

Other identity documents issued by Somalia do not meet the security requirements either.

Eritrea

In the view of the Migration Agency, as a citizen of Eritrea you can prove your identity if you have a national passport. In most cases, a certificate with a photograph can be sufficient if the identity document was issued by the embassy of Eritrea in Stockholm. On the other hand, Eritrean ID cards issued by the then-provisional government of Eritrea (EPLF) prior to the 1993 elections and which were issued thereafter cannot prove your identity since they do not meet the security requirements that must be imposed on an ID card.

Palestine

Documents that, in the view of the Migration Agency, can prove your identity:

  • A Palestinian travel document issued by the Palestinian Authority for Palestinians either from the West Bank or Gaza.
  • After a check at the Palestinian Authority, the Migration Agency can accept an ID card for residents of Gaza or the West bank with the accompanying white "stub" containing information on family members and marital status.
  • Israeli ID cards issued for Palestinians residing in Jerusalem.

State­less Pales­ti­nians

In most cases, the following documents can also prove your identity:

  • A Lebanese travel document for Palestinians, if the passport holder was born in Lebanon or has resided there for a long time. Other passports or identity documents cannot be accepted.
  • An Iraqi travel document for Palestinians, if the passport holder was born in Iraq or has resided there for a long time. Other Iraqi identity documents cannot be accepted.
  • A Syrian travel document for Palestinians, if the passport holder was born in Syria or has resided there for a long time.
  • An Egyptian travel document for Palestinians, if the passport holder was born in the Gaza region between 1949 and June 1967, or was born in Egypt or has resided there for a long time.

Palestinians who have resided in other countries than those named above can only prove their identities with a passport or ID document if, owing to birth or long-term residence in the country, they are considered to be known to the authorities.

According to the Swedish Migration Agency, a Palestinian travel document issued by the Palestinian authority for a person living outside the Palestinian areas cannot prove a person’s identity. A travel document with an ID number that starts with two zeros can be accepted if it is presented together with a certificate from the Palestinian embassy in Stockholm.

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