World Passport - Counterfeits and Fraudulent Issuance

Counterfeits and Fraudulent Issuance

Despite its limited acceptance among the countries of the world, the World Passport is so popular that criminals have even taken to producing fake ones. The Isle of Man's Financial Supervision Commission reports that they have identified counterfeit World Passports. Also, the first cross-jurisdictional fake passport case ever found in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China involved counterfeit World Passports as well. In February 1981, the local Public Security Bureau identified some Hong Kong criminals who were charging would-be World Passport holders more than ¥18,000 (more than US$10,000 at the official exchange rate at that time) in processing fees, and misrepresenting to them that World Passport holders could settle in any country in the world.

As mentioned above, Russia does not accept World Passports, but in the 1990s, many company formation agents in Russia sold the World Passport together in a package-deal with the setup of an offshore company (international business company), and falsely claimed that all countries of the world accept it as an identity document. In some cases such companies charged up to US$1,000 for the passport alone.

In Malaysia in 1994, a Nigerian man was arrested at the Central Market, Kuala Lumpur by tourist police during an identity check, after he showed a World Passport. A search of his belongings showed that he carried a total of five World Passports, as well as a Nigerian passport that had been used by another person to travel to Malaysia and Hong Kong. Authorities suspected he might be trying to sell the passports to other foreign nationals lacking valid travel documents.