E-passport, new MRP operations suspended

The Department of Immigration and Passports (DIP) has suspended electronic and machine-readable passport (MRP) operations as of yesterday, as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

However, MRP renewals will continue, in case there is no change in information.

"We have suspended the operations for e-passport and MRP until further notice, considering health risk and spread of the deadly virus," Maj Gen Shakil Ahmed, director general of DIP, told The Daily Star.

Brig Gen Saidur Rahman Khan, e-passport project director, said they have to take biometrics and retina scans for the e-passport application process.

"This is risky as the virus can spread while giving finger prints on the machine reader; the operators also assist the applicants by touching their hands to complete the procedure," he added.

Besides, an applicant needs to insert a part of their face into a machine to complete their retina scan, he said.

"We do not know the physical condition of the previous applicant, and it is also not possible to clean the scanning machine with sanitiser every time as it would damage it," said the project director.

"Therefore, we have suspended operations. It will resume once the situation returns to normalcy," the official added.

He said the process of issuing new MRPs also requires biometrics.

However, if any applicant comes to re-issue their MRP and if they do not need to change any information, then they can get their passport, he added.

New MRP applications and re-issue of a child's MRP will remain suspended as they will need to change their information and go through the biometric process, he added.

In the case of Hajj or special cases, the MRP operations will remain open, said Maj Gen Shakil Ahmed, director general of DIP.