- no location -
Select your location for location specific information:
Passport; notification of loss and recovery
If your German passport cannot be found or has been lost, you must report the loss. If you find the document again later, you must also report this.
Responsible for you
For contact details of the responsible authoritiy and local valid information select under "Select location" a location.
Procedure details
Description
If you lose your passport or temporary passport, you are obliged to inform the passport authority of your (residential) municipality immediately.
The passport authority must also be notified if it is found again. As a new document is/was usually issued, this is essential. It is also recommended that you apply for a new passport to prevent problems when using it.
If a criminal offense is involved, contact the local police station (see "Reporting a criminal offense to the police" under "Related topics").
Special notes
If a report is not made to the passport authority or not made in time, an administrative offense is committed which can be punished with a fine.
Despite a report on the recovery of the passport, foreign authorities may not recognize a passport reported as recovered for use in their country or may confiscate it. It is therefore recommended that you apply for a new passport if your passport is lost or stolen.
Legal bases
-
§ 15 Passgesetz (PassG)Pflichten des Inhabers
-
§ 25 Passgesetz (PassG)Ordnungswidrigkeiten
Related links
Related issues
-
Identity card; notification of loss and recovery
If your German ID card cannot be found or has been lost, you must report the loss. If you find the document again later, you must also report this.
-
Travel documents for children; notification of loss and recovery
If the German children's passport cannot be found or has been lost, you must report the loss. If you find the document again later, you must also report this.
-
Criminal complaint to the police; reimbursement
You can file a report if you believe that a criminal offense has been committed. Online reporting is possible for online auction fraud and certain crimes involving bicycles or motor vehicles, among other things.
Status: 24.03.2026
Editorially responsible for prodecure description: Bayerisches Staatsministerium des Innern, für Sport und Integration
Contains machine translated content.
Show the original content