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aaron
Airport Manager
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 Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2004 12:25 am Post subject: Passport photo absurdity |
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A German court has ruled that Germans are allowed to stick their tongues out in their passport photos.
The ruling comes after 30-year-old Alexander Mechthold appealed against his local passport office's decision to reject a passport photo showing him sticking his tongue out. "It's a tribute to my hero, Albert Einstein," Mechthold explained, alluding to a famous photograph showing Einstein in a similarly irreverent pose.
The official in Arnsberg refused to accept the picture for Mechtold's new passport, telling him it was illegal. But Mechthold took the case to court. It found there was no rule in Germany which stated passport photos couldn't show people with their tongue stuck out. Mechthold was told he could use the photo - and was issued a new passport. He did, however, have to sign a statement revoking his right of recourse should he ever encounter problems with border patrol officers because of the photo.
Aaron
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Davyburns
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Joined: 26 Sep 2003
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Location: North East England
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| Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2004 8:49 am Post subject: |
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I was once "detained" in Singapore, at the causway that crosses into Malaysia, and I dont think that kind of photograph in my passport would have helped my situation.
Davy
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Botherabbit
Flight Steward
Joined: 12 May 2004
Posts: 75
Location: London, England
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| Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2004 11:50 am Post subject: |
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No chance of that happening in the UK, here are some of the UK Passport service Guidelines!
The photographs must show:
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no shadows;
your full face, looking straight at the camera:
a neutral expression, with your mouth closed;
your eyes open and clearly visible (with no sunglasses or heavily tinted glasses, and no hair across your eyes);
no reflection on your spectacles, if you wear them, and the frames should not cover your eyes;
your full head, without any head covering, unless it is worn for religious beliefs; and
your face uncovered.
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sunshine82
Pilot
Joined: 26 Nov 2003
Posts: 696
Location: Colwyn Bay, UK
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| Posted: Thu Aug 05, 2004 11:04 pm Post subject: |
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But I always smile on my ID photos! And normally when I say hello to people too. It's silly insisiting on a neutral expression, when you only adopt it for walking past people rather than right up to them - though I don't suppose you could really expect people to say "hello" to the camera. OTOH, could be the new "cheese".
Kate |
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georgep
Captain
Joined: 29 Jul 2004
Posts: 2536
Location: Calgary (Canada)
3396 ants
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| Posted: Fri Aug 06, 2004 6:55 am Post subject: No Smile |
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Hi Kate,
Don't smile if you want a canadian passport  it's not allowed to smile on a photo for a passport there.
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John_from_Eurapart
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jeremy
Chief Steward
Joined: 13 Dec 2003
Posts: 185
Location: Mallorca
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| Posted: Wed Aug 11, 2004 10:13 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
no shadows;
your full face, looking straight at the camera:
a neutral expression, with your mouth closed;
your eyes open and clearly visible (with no sunglasses or heavily tinted glasses, and no hair across your eyes);
no reflection on your spectacles, if you wear them, and the frames should not cover your eyes;
your full head, without any head covering, unless it is worn for religious beliefs; and
your face uncovered.
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I find it really hard to do a neutral expression, bit like not thinking about a white elephant!
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Zephyr
Flight Steward
Joined: 20 Jan 2005
Posts: 66
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| Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:50 pm Post subject: |
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i am surprised i have been allowed into all the countries i have visited with my pp photo. i had just shaved my head and i look remarkably like a terrorist. i didn't think about the fact that my passport was going to be good for 10 years. 
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chooooocolat_moose
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Trev
Senior Pilot
Joined: 10 Sep 2002
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| Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 8:44 pm Post subject: |
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| Zephyr wrote: | | i had just shaved my head and i look remarkably like a terrorist. |
Thats probably why they let you through especially if you go to the US since Islam forbids such things therefore you'll never get an Islamic terrorist with a shaved head ... and that seems to be where they think they all come from.
As for changing your appearence, I have a feeling you have to get a new photo if it changes radically but I'm not sure exactly how much it has to change.
Trev
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John_from_Eurapart
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Joined: 24 Jan 2004
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| Posted: Fri Jan 21, 2005 7:28 pm Post subject: |
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Trev said:
| Quote: | | Thats probably why they let you through especially if you go to the US since Islam forbids such things therefore you'll never get an Islamic terrorist with a shaved head ... and that seems to be where they think they all come from. |
Trev, I hope the above is speculation on behalf of whoever. Terrorism isn't an Islamist, Roman Catholic, communist, fascist or any other label thing. It is carried out by a minority of individuals with a warped view of the world.
John
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Trev
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Location: Cumbria, England, UK
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| Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2005 9:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Eurapart wrote: | | Trev, I hope the above is speculation on behalf of whoever. Terrorism isn't an Islamist, Roman Catholic, communist, fascist or any other label thing. It is carried out by a minority of individuals with a warped view of the world. |
Seems to be the idea of the US government currently or at least a few of their top bods which pretty much colours what the US border people are looking for.
I wonder if you sent a fax to the US border controls saying "All people with green hair are terrorists" whether they'd still wag their tails and obey? Now, anyone know what Whitehouse notepaper looks like? 
Trev
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briggl
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Joined: 10 Sep 2002
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| Posted: Mon Jan 24, 2005 10:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | Thats probably why they let you through especially if you go to the US since Islam forbids such things therefore you'll never get an Islamic terrorist with a shaved head ... and that seems to be where they think they all come from. |
I travel a lot and in my experience, that is not the case. The selection of whom they will give extra searches to appears to be much more random than that. Most of the people I see in the line for extra searches do not look like Islamists, or any one particular type of person.
I see business men; little old ladies; whole families, with young children; and so on.
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