Yes, it is legal to photocopy a passport. No federal law prohibits duplicating your own U.S. passport for a travel backup, a job application, a visa packet, or any other personal use. What federal law punishes is altering a copy, passing one off as a real passport, or using someone else’s passport information to deceive. The copy itself is not the crime; the deception is.
What Federal Law Actually Prohibits
Two statutes govern passport fraud, and neither one mentions photocopying. 18 U.S.C. 1543 makes it a crime to forge, alter, or falsely use a passport or anything that looks like one, but only when done “with intent that the same may be used.” A photocopy tucked into your suitcase as a backup carries no fraudulent intent. A photocopy with a swapped photo and a new name does.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1543 – Forgery or False Use of Passport
18 U.S.C. 1544 covers misuse of a valid passport: using one issued to someone else, giving your passport to another person for their use, or using it in violation of its conditions. If you copied a friend’s passport and handed it to a third party who tried to impersonate that friend, both statutes could come into play.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1544 – Misuse of Passport
When Copying Crosses Into a Crime
Altering a photocopy in any way, whether by changing the name, photo, date of birth, or expiration, violates 18 U.S.C. 1543 whether or not the altered copy is ever actually used. The statute reaches the making of the forgery itself, so the person who prepares it does not need to hand it over to be prosecuted.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1543 – Forgery or False Use of Passport
Using another person’s passport information to open bank accounts, apply for credit, or obtain benefits is identity fraud under 18 U.S.C. 1028, which carries up to 15 years in prison when the offender obtains $1,000 or more in value in any one-year period.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1028 – Fraud and Related Activity in Connection With Identification Documents, Authentication Features, and Information If the passport information is used to commit a separate felony, federal aggravated identity theft adds a mandatory two-year sentence that runs consecutively and cannot be reduced.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1028A – Aggravated Identity Theft
Penalties for Passport Fraud
Prison exposure under 1543 and 1544 scales with the circumstances:
- Up to 10 years for a first or second offense not tied to terrorism or drug trafficking.
- Up to 15 years for a third or subsequent offense.
- Up to 20 years when the offense is connected to drug trafficking.
- Up to 25 years when connected to international terrorism.
Fines can reach $250,000 for an individual.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1543 – Forgery or False Use of Passport5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3571 – Sentence of Fine
Legitimate Reasons to Copy Your Passport
The U.S. Department of State actively encourages travelers to photocopy their passport before going abroad. Its international travel checklist recommends making multiple copies, leaving a set with a trusted contact at home, keeping a set on your person, and saving photos of travel documents on your phone.6U.S. Department of State. International Travel Checklist
If your passport is lost or stolen overseas, that copy is proof of U.S. citizenship when you apply for an emergency replacement at a U.S. embassy or consulate. Without one, the embassy may need to run a file search to verify your identity, which slows down your return home.7U.S. Department of State. Lost or Stolen Passport Abroad
Copies also come up in visa applications for foreign countries, mortgage and real estate closings that require proof of identity, and situations where you would rather leave the original in a hotel safe. A photocopy is not official identification, but it can carry you through informal uses like age verification.
Form I-9 Employment Verification
When you start a new job, your employer must verify your identity and work authorization using Form I-9, and a U.S. passport satisfies both at once. Employers enrolled in E-Verify are required to photocopy the passport’s ID page and barcode page and keep those copies with the employee’s Form I-9.8E-Verify. If My Employer Did Not Retain a Copy of the Required Photo Match Document Employers not enrolled in E-Verify may choose to copy documents, but if they copy for one worker they must copy for every worker; selectively copying based on national origin or perceived immigration status can violate anti-discrimination laws.9U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 10.2 Retaining Copies of Form I-9 Documents A photocopy is never a substitute for the original during the verification itself; the employer must examine the actual document.
Banks and Financial Institutions
Opening a bank account triggers the bank’s Customer Identification Program under federal anti-money-laundering rules. A passport is an accepted identity document, and the bank must record the document type, identification number, place of issuance, and expiration date.10eCFR. 31 CFR 1020.220 – Customer Identification Program Requirements for Banks Banks often photocopy the passport to meet that recordkeeping duty, though the regulation itself calls for a record of the details rather than a copy specifically.
Where a Photocopy Won’t Work
A passport photocopy will not get you through a TSA checkpoint. TSA requires a valid government-issued photo ID, and a copy does not qualify.11Transportation Security Administration. Acceptable Identification at the TSA Checkpoint
For international air travel the rules are stricter. U.S. citizens must present a valid U.S. passport to board an international flight. A photocopy, an expired passport, or any other substitute will be refused at the gate.12U.S. Customs and Border Protection. U.S. Citizens – Documents Needed to Enter the United States and/or to Travel Internationally
When You Need a Certified or Notarized Copy
Some legal proceedings and government processes will not accept a plain photocopy. The U.S. Department of State keeps passport records back to March 1925 and will issue certified copies on written request; certified copies cost $50 and processing takes 12 to 16 weeks.13U.S. Department of State. Get Copies of Passport Records
Some institutions instead accept a notarized photocopy. Whether a notary can certify your passport photocopy as a true copy depends on your state. Some states authorize notaries to do it, others prohibit it, and a few allow copy certification only for particular records. Check with your state’s notary oversight agency before assuming this is an option.
Making and Storing Copies Safely
Print in black and white. Color copies look close enough to the real thing to invite confusion, and writing “COPY” across a blank area of the page removes any ambiguity about what someone is holding.
Store digital copies on an encrypted device or behind a password-protected cloud service. A passport contains your full name, date of birth, passport number, and photograph, which together give an identity thief everything needed to impersonate you. Keep physical copies in a fireproof safe or locked filing cabinet at home, and when you travel, store the copy separately from the original so one incident does not take both.
When a copy has served its purpose, destroy it. Shred paper copies and permanently delete digital files from your device and any cloud backup. A forgotten photocopy in an old drawer or an unencrypted email attachment is the kind of thing that surfaces during a burglary or data breach months later and creates a problem you thought you were done with.