Today, the exertion of navigating security at airports with all our belongings in order and carrying our luggage through ever-growing airports can make us look just like passport photographs. Most travelers prefer not to see their passport pictures or even carry additional copies around.

Then why do so many travel websites suggest taking several additional copies of your passport pictures Online, and what creative ways to use the different images?

 

You Might Need to Have Additional Passport Pictures

Despite all the fuss, There are some legitimate reasons to keep more recent passport photographs available:

1. The most obvious reason to have extra passport photos is to be prepared if your passport gets stolen and you must find a replacement fast. The issue is that the images should be current. In particular, they have to be taken in the past 6 months and show your current appearance to be considered valid.
2. In certain countries, standard passport-sized images are required for obtaining visas. This is where an additional passport photograph will be useful. It is possible to determine what countries need U.S. citizens to have visas by examining the information specific to each country available on the U.S. State Department website. Check out the entry and exit conditions applicable to U.S. citizens.
3. Certain countries, including Botswana and Zambia, require a photograph to purchase a multi-day pass in national parks.
4. Parents of adoptive children must carry extra copies of their passport photographs to fill out the forms they have to complete for foreign-country adoptions.
5. We've also learned that certain countries require photos when buying local SIM cards for mobile phones.
    

3 ; Clever Ways to Use Additional Passport Photographs

If you happen to have extra passport pictures, Here are some ideas for how to make use of these photos:

1. They're excellent to use for reports to the police. If the photos of your child are new, for instance, having extra passport pictures could prove useful to submit a police report if they're missing or abducted during your vacation. This is especially true when your child is missing on cruise ships, and the staff is searching for the missing person.
2. They're great for identifying luggage. Insert a passport photograph into the luggage tag, then attach it to your address at home, and you'll be able to prove that it's your bag.
3. They're a fantastic way to tell when it's time for you to end your vacation. In the end, Erma Bombeck once wrote, "When you look like your passport photo, it's time to go home."

What Should You Do With Additional Passport Photos?

If you've got extra passport photos that are hard copies, put them in a small, zippered plastic bag to protect them from getting destroyed by moisture or other particles that end inside your luggage.

Most travel experts indeed suggest keeping a digital copy of the most recent passport photo to use as an emergency backup. You will not be able to apply that photo to an alternative passport unless the passport is less than six months old. However, it could prove useful in other situations