Passport Type

Defined under the namespace Scandit.Datacapture.Id

PassportType

Added in version 8.5.0

Sub-category of a passport.

The type is derived from the second letter of the MRZ document code, as defined in ICAO Doc 9303-4. ICAO made these letters mandatory for passports issued from 1 January 2026. Before that, some issuing states used the letters with other meanings. The type is the first match of these rules:

• China: the document number decides. A number that starts with E is National, and a number that starts with SE or PE is Official.

• Switzerland: PM is National when the passport expires before 1 January 2036, PN is Diplomatic, and other letters have their ICAO meaning.

• These issuing states and document codes are National. For South Korea, only when the passport expires before 1 January 2036. For PR, PS and PT, only when the MRZ nationality is the issuing state.

  • PM: South Africa, South Korea.

  • PO: Afghanistan, Burundi, Cameroon, Comoros, Guinea, Laos, Madagascar, Niger, Sierra Leone.

  • PE: Mongolia, Myanmar, Romania.

  • PR: Barbados, Maldives, Myanmar, South Korea, Venezuela.

  • PS: Myanmar, South Korea.

  • PT: Myanmar.

• When the MRZ nationality is the issuing state, PS is Official, and PR and PT are National. A refugee, stateless or alien document is not issued to a citizen of the issuing state.

• P<, P and PP are National, PD is Diplomatic, PK is Seafarer, PL is LaissezPasser and PU is EmergencyTravelDocument.

• A passport that expires on or after 1 January 2036 has the ICAO meaning of the letter.

• All other passports are Unknown.

When the type is National or Unknown, an MRZ nationality of XXA makes it Stateless, and XXB or XXC makes it Refugee.

Before 8.7, passports were reported with the ICAO meaning of the second letter.

National

Added in version 8.5.0

A regular national passport.

Emergency

Added in version 8.5.0

Emergency passport.

Diplomatic

Added in version 8.5.0

Diplomatic passport.

Official

Added in version 8.5.0

Official or service passport.

Refugee

Added in version 8.5.0

Refugee travel document.

Alien

Added in version 8.5.0

Alien passport.

Stateless

Added in version 8.5.0

Stateless person’s travel document.

LaissezPasser

Added in version 8.5.0

Laissez-passer issued by an international organisation.

Military

Added in version 8.5.0

Military passport.

Seafarer

Added in version 8.5.0

Seafarer passport.

EmergencyTravelDocument

Added in version 8.7.0

Emergency travel document, a single-sheet document as defined in ICAO Doc 9303-8. Distinct from Emergency, which is an emergency passport booklet. Before 8.7 both were reported as Emergency.

Unknown

Added in version 8.7.0

The passport type cannot be determined reliably from the machine-readable zone. A passport of this type is not rejected unless Unknown is in IdCaptureSettings.rejectPassportTypes.