ILLEGAL PASSPORTS BY KATE BRADFORD

WHAT IS A PASSPORT? A passport is an official document issued by a government that certifies a holder's identity and citizenship; entitling them to travel under its protection to and from foreign countries across the globe.

To be eligible for a British passport, for example, you must be a citizen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. However having British nationality doesn’t guarantee you a passport; you may not be eligible for a passport if:

1. you’re suspected of a serious crime and an arrest warrant has been issued

2. a court order stops you having a UK passport or restricts your travel

3. you’re on bail and bail conditions mean you can’t leave the UK

4. you’ve been brought back to the UK before at the government’s expense and haven’t repaid what you owe

5. you’ve received a European Union or United Nations order which restricts your travel

WHAT IS AN ILLEGAL/FAKE PASSPORT? A fake passport is a passport issued by the government which is then copied or modified by an illegal person or group that is not authorized to create passports, pass documents or authorised to engage in activities such as this. People such as these are known as clobbers.

Illegal/Fake passports are also known as:1. Camouflage passport – this is an ‘passport’ that was

never a real passport; it has been modified and manufactured to be fake.

2. Fantasy passport - produced by United Passports that are novelty items used as souvenirs and are not made with the intention to be used as a fake passport or to trick customs officials.

WHY WOULD SOMEONE WANT AN ILLEGAL PASSPORT? Fake passports can be used for escape into exile, age deception, identity theft, illegal immigration, and organized crime.

An illegal passports costs $1000-$5000 to buy; this is around £645-£3235. If you get caught holding an illegal passport you can get 10 years in prison. For the head of Europe's border agency, Fabrice Leggeri, Leggeri warns Business Insider UK readers about the emerging fake Syrian passport market: "There are people who are in Turkey now who buy fake Syrian passports because they know Syrians get the right to asylum in all the member states of the European Union," Leggeri told radio station Europe 1.

HOW DO MIGRANTS OR REFUGEES GAIN ILLEGAL PASSPORTS? HERE is link to an article on The Guardian website on how Thailand’s trade in fake passports fuels crime gangs around the world to start selling illegal passports to migrants and refugees in need of asylum.

STEPS TO ALLEGEDLY CLAIM AN ILLEGAL PASSPORT – often taken by refugees in need:

1. Illegal passport websites that advertise illegal passports for sale at cheap prices.

2. Move into a new property or bedsit/squat and visit local Family Records Centre and look up the name of a person who had a Birth Certificate and was born at around the same time as you/I. You don’t need proof of identity and you could pay cash to receive a certificate.

3. Open up an account with utility provider and ‘clone’ identity with fake Birth Certificate

4. Receive a passport application form, ask professional to fill in form and send off passport information to receive shortly one in the post.