Report a lost or stolen passport

Bürgeramt · passport services

In personLegal obligation to reportBMI

A lost or stolen passport is not merely a nuisance but a case with a legal obligation to report: under § 15 Nr. 3 of the Passport Act (Passgesetz, PassG), the holder is obliged to notify the passport authority of the loss of the passport and of its recovery without delay. “Without delay” (unverzüglich) means without culpable hesitation – that is, on the same or the next working day, not just shortly before your next trip. The competent authority is the passport authority at your principal residence, usually the Bürgeramt (citizens’ office).

Once you have notified the loss, the passport is recorded as missing and entered in the police search database as well as in the European and international databases for stolen travel documents. This reduces the risk of third parties using your document to open accounts, conclude contracts or cross a border. The regular passport fees, which are uniform nationwide, apply to the replacement: €70.00 for persons aged 24 and over and €37.50 for those under that age. There is no penalty fee for the loss. If you have to travel immediately, you receive the temporary passport (vorläufiger Reisepass) for €26.00 directly at the office.

Last updated3 October 2026

Legal basis§ 15 Nr. 3 PassG · § 25 PassG

VerificationChecked against gesetze-im-internet.de & bmi.bund.de

Written and reviewed byAndrés Sánchez Botta

Independent information website: we are not the Bürgeramt, not an authority and not a paid advice service – we do not submit applications on your behalf. All information comes from official sources and is explained here in plain language; binding information always comes from the competent body. Passport fees are uniform nationwide; appointment availability, means of payment and processing times on site can vary depending on the local authority. All information is provided without guarantee. We are neither lawyers nor tax consultants: we document official procedures and check the information against the official source – this is information, not legal or tax advice.

Required documents

Police report of loss or theft – If the passport was stolen, you should go to the police first: the report records the time and circumstances and exonerates you if someone uses your passport to conclude contracts or cross a border. You can obtain it at any police station; it is free of charge and not subject to any deadline. Please note: the notification required by law under § 15 Nr. 3 PassG is addressed to the passport authority – many Bürgeramt offices record it during the same appointment at which you apply for the replacement passport.

Identity card (Personalausweis) or another valid identity document – The passport authority must establish your identity beyond doubt before it issues a replacement passport. As a rule, your identity card is sufficient for this. If your passport and identity card were stolen together, bring what you have – for example your driving licence, a service ID card or a copy of your old passport; these documents do not replace an identity document, but they make the identity check considerably easier for the authority.

Biometric passport photo in digital form – The photograph must meet the ICAO biometric requirements: frontal shot, neutral facial expression, evenly lit background. Since 1 May 2025, paper photos are no longer accepted in Germany. The photo is either taken directly at the authority or transmitted digitally and in encrypted form to the passport authority by a photographer or a photo booth. Check in advance which option your office offers.

Passport number or a copy of the lost passport – With the passport number, the authority can flag the document as missing immediately. You can find the number on copies of your passport, old visas, and hotel or flight bookings. If you do not have it, that is not an obstacle: the passport authority can look up your passport data in the passport register, although this can make the appointment take longer.

Birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde) or proof of nationality – Required if you no longer have a valid German identity document or if your data in the passport register is not unambiguous. You can obtain the birth certificate from the Standesamt (registry office) at your place of birth, and on application also by post or online. Allow extra time for this if you are under time pressure.

Certificate in the event of a change of name – If your name has changed since your lost passport was issued, for example through marriage, divorce or a name declaration (Namenserklärung), present the relevant certificate in the original, such as the marriage certificate (Eheurkunde) or the divorce decree (Scheidungsbeschluss). Without this proof, the authority issues the replacement passport in the most recently registered name.

Approval of both persons with parental custody for minors – Since 1 January 2024, the children’s passport (Kinderreisepass) no longer exists; as a replacement, children receive a regular electronic passport for €37.50. The consent of both parents with parental custody and proof of parental custody are required. If only one parent attends, the other parent’s approval in writing, together with a copy of their identity document, must be provided. The child must come along in person.

Proof of urgent travel (only for the vorläufiger Reisepass or express) – Many passport authorities only grant the vorläufiger Reisepass or the express procedure if you provide evidence of the urgency. Flight or train tickets, a hotel booking or a certificate from your employer confirming a business trip serve as proof. Bring the evidence to the appointment, printed or in digital form.

Step by step

Report the loss to the passport authority without delay

The first and legally decisive step is the notification to the passport authority at your principal residence – usually the Bürgeramt. § 15 Nr. 3 PassG requires it “without delay”, that is, without culpable hesitation; do not wait to see whether the passport turns up again. Many local authorities accept the report of loss in advance by phone, via an online form or by email and arrange an appointment for the replacement passport at the same time. Have your name, your date of birth and – if known – the passport number ready.

In the event of theft, also report it to the police

If the passport was stolen, go to the nearest police station and report the theft. Depending on how busy it is, this takes about 20 to 45 minutes, is free of charge and you receive a confirmation in writing with a reference number. Bring an identity document and describe the place, time period and circumstances as precisely as possible. You need the confirmation for insurance companies, for the German mission abroad and as proof of the date from which the passport was no longer in your possession.

Have the passport flagged as missing

The passport authority records the document as missing. The passport number is entered in the police search database and circulated via the European and international databases for stolen travel documents. From that point on, the passport shows up as a hit at every border or identity check and is confiscated. You do not have to apply for anything separately – the alert is part of the report of loss (Verlustanzeige).

Book an appointment and apply for a replacement passport

The submission of the application must be made strictly in person; representation is not possible. Book an appointment online and bring all documents in the original. In large cities such as Berlin, Hamburg, Munich or Cologne, experience shows that regular appointments are booked up several weeks in advance, while smaller local authorities often offer short-notice appointments or open consultation hours. If a trip is imminent, point this out explicitly: many offices keep separate time slots free for emergencies. From the age of 6, two fingerprints are recorded digitally and stored exclusively on the chip of the new passport.

Pay the fee and collect the passport

The fee is due on submission of the application: €70.00 for persons aged 24 and over, €37.50 for those under that age, and €26.00 for the vorläufiger Reisepass. The local authority decides which means of payment are accepted – some offices accept only EC cards, others only cash. The regular passport is usually ready for collection after three to four weeks; with the express procedure, it is usually ready on the third working day after receipt by the passport manufacturer. Collection takes place in person; the vorläufiger Reisepass, on the other hand, is issued immediately at the office and handed to you straight away.

Also report it if you find the passport again

If the passport you thought was lost turns up later, your obligation does not end – § 15 Nr. 3 PassG explicitly also requires you to report its recovery, and likewise without delay. If no replacement passport has been issued yet, the authority can delete the alert and the passport remains usable. If a new passport has already been issued, the old one is withdrawn, because nobody may hold more than one German passport without a proven legitimate interest (§ 1 Abs. 3, § 12 Abs. 2 PassG).

Fees & costs

Service	Amount
Verlustanzeige to the police and the passport authority	No fee
Replacement passport (24 and over)	€70.00
Replacement passport (under 24)	€37.50
Vorläufiger Reisepass (immediately at the office)	€26.00
Express surcharge	+ €32.00
Passport with 48 pages (frequent travellers)	+ €22.00
Penalty fee for the loss	Not provided for
Travel document as a passport substitute abroad	Depends on the competent German mission abroad

Passport fees are laid down in federal law and are therefore identical in every local authority – a replacement passport costs the same in Munich as in Leipzig or Kiel. A loss does not lead to a surcharge: you pay exactly the fee that also applies to a regular new application. Anyone aged 24 or over who needs a replacement passport with 48 pages in the express procedure therefore pays €70.00 + €22.00 + €32.00. What actually varies depending on the local authority are the accepted means of payment – some offices accept only EC cards, others only cash – as well as appointment availability and waiting times. If, by way of exception, you do not apply for the passport at the authority of your principal residence, an additional charge for the extra work can apply; the amount depends on the competent authority.

Important notes

“Without delay” is a real deadline. The term means “without culpable hesitation” and in practice is understood by the authorities as “on the same or the next working day”. The Passport Act does not set a fixed number of days – but anyone who puts off the notification for weeks risks a regulatory fine under § 25 PassG and bears the full risk of misuse in the meantime.

A passport reported as lost does not automatically become invalid. § 11 PassG lists the grounds for invalidity exhaustively – loss is not one of them. However, the passport is flagged for a police search, so it is retained during checks. The passport authority decides whether it can still be used once you have reported its recovery.

Recovery must be reported just like the loss. § 15 Nr. 3 PassG explicitly names both cases in one sentence. If no replacement passport has been issued yet, the alert can be deleted. Once the new passport has been issued, the authority will as a rule require you to hand in the old document (§ 15 Nr. 2 PassG).

The vorläufiger Reisepass is an emergency solution, not a full replacement. It costs €26.00, is issued immediately, is valid for a maximum of one year and contains no chip. Numerous countries do not accept it, or only with a visa – check the entry requirements of your destination country before booking.

Loss abroad: first the police, then the German mission abroad. German embassies and consulates regularly require the local police report as proof. For the return journey, a travel document as a passport substitute (Reiseausweis als Passersatz) is usually issued; the fee for this depends on the competent German mission abroad. Carrying a copy of your passport with you speeds up the procedure noticeably.

Foreign nationals should contact their embassy. The Bürgeramt is never the competent authority for a foreign passport; instead, it is the diplomatic mission of your country of origin. If your residence title or visa was affixed as a sticker in the lost passport, also inform the Ausländerbehörde (foreigners authority): the title must be transferred to the new passport. The electronic residence title in credit-card format is a separate document and is not affected by the loss of the passport.

If your passport and identity card were stolen together, block the online ID function. The identity card can be blocked for eID use around the clock via the blocking hotline 116 116. The passport has no online ID function; for the passport, notification to the passport authority is sufficient.

Since 1 January 2024, children can no longer get a children’s passport. As a replacement, a regular electronic passport is issued for €37.50, valid for six years. Both persons with parental custody must give their approval, and the child must appear in person.

Make a copy of your documents as a precaution. A photo of the passport data page on your smartphone and a second copy kept in a separate place speed up considerably both the alert in Germany and the issuing of a passport substitute abroad.

Common mistakes

Informing only the police, not the passport authority.

The legal obligation to notify under § 15 Nr. 3 PassG applies towards the passport authority. Anyone who goes only to the police does not formally fulfil it. The infringement is a regulatory offence (Ordnungswidrigkeit) under § 25 Abs. 2 PassG and can be punished with a regulatory fine (Geldbuße) of up to €5,000. In addition, without notification to the passport authority, the passport is in some circumstances not even flagged for a police search in the first place.

Keeping quiet about finding the passport again.

Many people do not report the passport they have found because they fear a regulatory fine for a “false report”. In fact, it is precisely keeping quiet that is the infringement: § 15 Nr. 3 PassG also requires notification of the recovery, sanctioned via § 25 PassG. You also risk the passport, which is still flagged, being retained as a police search hit at the next border check.

Travelling with the passport reported as lost.

As long as the alert flagging it as missing remains in place, the document triggers a hit at every check. The consequences range from a time-consuming identity check to confiscation of the passport – in the worst case abroad, where you are then stuck without a valid travel document.

Counting on the vorläufiger Reisepass for the USA.

The Visa Waiver Programme requires an electronic passport with a chip. The vorläufiger Reisepass has no chip and is not recognised. The consequence is refusal of the ESTA authorisation or of entry – if the trip has already been booked, a complete financial loss.

Bringing a paper passport photo.

Since 1 May 2025, printed passport photos are no longer permitted in Germany; the photo must be transmitted digitally or taken at the office. Anyone who turns up with a paper photo cannot complete the application. The appointment is lost and must be booked again – in very busy cities, this costs several weeks.

Waiting for the regular replacement passport even though the trip is getting closer.

The regular passport usually takes three to four weeks. Anyone who only reacts shortly before departure is left with only the more expensive alternatives: the express procedure for a €32.00 surcharge or the vorläufiger Reisepass, which many destination countries do not accept. Often the only option left in the end is to cancel the trip.

Going to the office without an appointment and without documents.

The submission of the application must be made strictly in person and requires complete original documents. If proof of identity or, for a child, the approval of the second person with parental custody is missing, the application is rejected and you have to go back again – with a new wait for an appointment.

Frequently asked questions

What do I have to do immediately if my passport is gone?

Report the loss to the passport authority at your principal residence without delay – this is expressly required by § 15 Nr. 3 PassG. In the event of theft, also report it to the police so that the time and circumstances are documented. As a rule, you can already apply for the replacement passport or a vorläufiger Reisepass at the same appointment.

Do I have to report the loss to the police?

You are legally obliged to notify the passport authority, not the police. In the event of theft, however, a police report is strongly recommended: it documents the time, exonerates you if the document is later misused and is regularly required by insurance companies as well as by the German mission abroad. Both reports are free of charge.

How much does a replacement passport cost after a loss – is there a penalty fee?

Passport fee law does not provide for a separate penalty fee for the loss. The regular fees, which are uniform nationwide, apply: €70.00 for persons aged 24 and over and €37.50 for persons under 24. The vorläufiger Reisepass costs €26.00, and the express procedure adds a further €32.00.

I have found the passport I reported as lost – what now?

You must also report the recovery to the passport authority without delay, because § 15 Nr. 3 PassG expressly names both cases. If no replacement passport has been issued yet, the authority can delete the alert flagging it as missing. If the new passport has already been issued, the authority will as a rule require you to hand in the old passport, which is then invalidated. Under no circumstances travel with a passport that has been reported as long as the alert remains in place – it can be retained at border control.

What should I do if my passport is lost or stolen abroad?

First report it to the local police and then contact the competent German embassy or consulate. There, a travel document as a passport substitute can be issued for your return journey, and in individual cases also a vorläufiger Reisepass. The amount of the fee is based on the rules for official acts abroad and depends on the competent German mission abroad.

How quickly can I get a replacement if I have to travel at short notice?

The regular passport is produced centrally and is usually ready for collection after three to four weeks. For a surcharge of €32.00, the express procedure usually delivers the passport on the third working day after receipt by the passport manufacturer. If it has to be even faster, the passport authority issues the vorläufiger Reisepass for €26.00 immediately at the office; many offices require proof of the upcoming trip for this.

Can I enter the USA with a temporary passport (vorläufiger Reisepass)?

No. For visa-free entry under the Visa Waiver Programme, the USA requires an electronic passport with a chip. The vorläufiger Reisepass contains no chip and is not recognised for this purpose – without a regular ePass, the only option is a visa. After losing your passport, therefore, allow for the regular production time or the express procedure.

Does the procedure also apply to foreign nationals?

No. For the loss of a foreign passport, the embassy or consulate of the country of origin is competent, not the Bürgeramt. Also report the loss to the Ausländerbehörde if your residence title or visa was affixed as a sticker in the lost passport – it must be transferred to the new passport. The electronic residence title in credit-card format, as a separate document, is not affected by the loss of the passport.