www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Is a passport valid if it's missing a page (in the middle, not front or back)?

Lets say your K*D tears out a page, would it still be valid?

oooh.. shit. that's a good question. you're not supposed to modify, change, alter, delete, etc.... you might wanna call the u.s. passport hotline and inquire about that one...

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

I just went through this exact scenario. The answer I was given by the passport office is no, it is not valid anymore. They consider the passport to be "mutilated". I had to reapply the same as a new application and pay the same fees. In addition I had to hand write a statement detailing how my passport got mutilated and sign and date it. This was sent in, along with the mutilated passport, application, identification, etc. I should have my brand new passport in 4-6 weeks.

how did it get mutilated, out of curiousity?

Well, let's just say that I should have kept it in a safer place, away from prying eyes and curious little hands. Lesson learned, and enough said.

Im going to be the optimistic one here, but if its pulled out cleanly, what are the odds of them actually knowing? Ive never seen them go through page by page.

I guess kind of a crappy way to try and see, as if it didnt work you would likely be out a plane ticket, and get an ear full from some customs guy.

If you're short on time and can't replace it before a trip then I don't see why you wouldn't just give it whirl anyway, since many of us fly on non-refundable tickets and you'd be out a ticket anyway, but if you've got the time to replace it then you might as well. Be legal and don't risk phucking up your vacation. The cost of passport replacement is small potatoes next to not being able to go at all.

If you're in a bind you can get a new one in less than a week by using a passport agency & FedEx. I did that a year & a half ago with AAA Passport in Austin. It was a bit pricey but it was also a deductable expense. As was my 2nd passport so prying eyes would not know I had been visiting my novia....


/Dan D.

good move, you wouldn't want your wife to find out.

Page numbers my good friend, page numbers.

The only thing I have ever seen any official do with my passport in the US is scan it upon entry; and when you go into CR, they could care less. They just open it up to an empty page and stamp it.