page_title: German passport
section_title: Physical appearance
hierarchical_section_title: German passport / Physical appearance
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Passkartendatenseite des deutschen Reisepasses von Erika Mustermann (Muster 2017).
context_page_description: German passports are issued to nationals of Germany for the purpose of international travel. A German passport is, besides the German ID card and the German Emergency Travel Document, the only other officially recognised document that German authorities will routinely accept as proof of identity from German citizens. Besides serving as proof of identity and presumption of German nationality, they facilitate the process of securing assistance from German consular officials abroad. German passports are valid for ten years or six years and share the standardised layout and burgundy red design with other EU passports. Every German citizen is also a citizen of the European Union. The passport, along with the national identity card, allows for free rights of movement and residence in any of the states of the European Union, European Economic Area, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
context_section_description: German passports have, since 1 January 1988, followed the standard European Union passport design, with burgundy red cover and the German Eagle emblazoned in the centre of the front cover. The word "Reisepass" (German for travel passport) is inscribed below the coat of arms, with Europäische Union (German for European Union) and Bundesrepublik Deutschland (German for Federal Republic of Germany) appear above.
  On 23 February 2017, Germany unveiled a new passport design to be put in use from 1 March 2017.
  German passports are normally 32 pages long; a 48-page version for frequent travellers can be issued on request.
caption: Signature page and data page of a contemporary German passport (March 2017)
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