Official-source guide
How INTERPOL's lost passport database works
- Database
- INTERPOL Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database 1
- Records supplied by
- INTERPOL member countries 1
- Document types
- Stolen, lost, revoked, invalid, and stolen blank travel or identity documents 1
- Checks made by
- Police, immigration, and border officers with authorised access 1
- Traveller report
- Made to the issuing country's official route, not to INTERPOL
What SLTD contains
Member countries submit the identifying details of travel and identity documents reported stolen, lost, revoked, invalid, or stolen blank. INTERPOL says the database contains document numbers and related document details, not the passport holder's personal data 1.
The national authority remains responsible for the source record. INTERPOL makes the record available for authorised checks across member countries.
How a border check uses it
Authorised police, immigration, and border officers can compare a presented document with SLTD. INTERPOL describes the database as a tool for checking whether a travel document has been reported invalid 1.
A match tells the officer to follow the responsible authority's procedure. INTERPOL does not decide whether a person may enter or leave a country.
Why a recovered passport is unsafe to use
A passport authority may cancel the document as soon as the loss is recorded. National guidance from the United Kingdom, United States, Poland, Nepal, and other issuers tells travellers not to use a recovered passport after reporting it 2,3.
Trying to travel with a cancelled document can cause a failed check and delay. Give it to the issuing passport authority or embassy instead.
What to do after a loss
Use the official loss-report route for the passport's country. Report theft to local police when the issuing authority or embassy requires the report. Contact the nearest embassy when abroad.
Keep the report reference. It can support a replacement passport, emergency travel document, visa replacement, insurance claim, and explanation to border officials.
Common questions
Can I report my passport directly to INTERPOL?
No. Report it through the issuing country's official passport, police, or embassy route.
Does SLTD contain personal data?
INTERPOL says it contains document details, not the passport holder's personal data 1.
Who can search it?
Authorised police, immigration, and border officers 1.
Can I use a recovered passport?
Do not use it after reporting it. Check with the issuing authority and surrender it as directed 2,3.
Rules and fees change. Check the official site linked above before you apply or pay. Spotted an error? Email [email protected] with the official link.
Sources
- INTERPOL: Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database
- UK Passport Office: report a lost or stolen passport
- US Department of State: lost or stolen passport
Related
- What happens to a passport once you report it lost or stolen
Why a reported passport is cancelled for good, how Interpol's Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database works, and what happens if you find it later.
- Lost your passport abroad: first steps
What to do first when your passport is lost or stolen abroad, from official advice by the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Germany.
- Lost or stolen US passport
How to report a lost or stolen US passport, the DS-11 replacement fees, and how to get an emergency passport at a US embassy abroad.
- Lost or stolen UK passport
How to cancel a lost or stolen UK passport online, what a replacement costs, and how to get a £125 emergency travel document abroad.