The Passport Department has achieved remarkable success after removing the police verification requirement for passport applications, and applicants are now beginning to enjoy the benefits.
Authorities report that by reducing hassle and cutting down on brokers’ interference, applicants are receiving their passports within the stipulated time. Until February 21, the day police verification was removed from the passport process, 169,138 passports were pending. However, after removing the police verification requirement, these passports have been delivered to the applicants.
This marks a groundbreaking success in the history of passports in the country.
Additionally, the Passport Department revealed that in March, 257,053 passports were issued, followed by 322,130 in April, and 352,424 in May.
Major General Nurul Anwar, Director General of the department, said that after lifting the verification requirement, applicants are now receiving their passports within the prescribed time. The delays that used to occur in between have now been eliminated.
Dr. Kudrat-e-Khuda, columnist and professor of law at Daffodil International University, said that removing police verification has established citizens’ rights.
A senior official of the Immigration and Passport Department (DIP) explained that police verification used to cause delays in timely passport delivery, and customers often blamed the passport office. But now, under the super express service without police verification, it is possible to issue a new passport within 24 to 48 hours for any urgent need.
On February 18, the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Security Services Division issued a circular signed by Additional Secretary Kazi Golam Tousif, stating that passports will be issued based on the applicant’s National ID (NID) information, not police verification.
The circular also mentioned that for Bangladeshis living abroad and minors applying for new passports, passports will be issued without police verification based on online-verified birth registration data. For passport re-issuance where fundamental information has changed, passports will be issued using National ID information. If the passport application data matches the National ID or birth registration databases, it will be considered that necessary investigations under Section 5(2) of the Bangladesh Passport Order 1973 have been completed.
Earlier, on February 16, during the inauguration speech of the District Commissioner (DC) Conference 2025 at Shapla Hall, the chief adviser of the interim government, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, stated that police verification would no longer be required for passports. He urged district commissioners to communicate such decisions to the public.
He said, “Why should police verification be required for passports? It is a citizen’s right. We have made laws; from now on, police verification is not needed. This message must reach the villages. People suffer unnecessary harassment. Harassment should not be our norm. The government should not mean harassment; this must change.”
Later, the chief adviser called on the district commissioners again to ensure that these government decisions reach the people.
