The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has cancelled a total of 701 Diplomatic and Service passports as part of a nationwide effort to recover official travel documents from former government officials and other ineligible individuals.
A statement issued by the Ministry on Tuesday said the cancelled documents comprise 341 unreturned Diplomatic passports and 360 Service passports. These passports have been placed on a stop-list and are now invalid for international travel.
The cancellation follows earlier directives issued on January 15 and March 10, 2025, calling on former officials and other specified categories of passport holders to return their official travel documents. The recall forms part of efforts to enforce compliance with existing passport regulations and tighten control over the use of official travel privileges.
The categories of individuals affected by the cancellation include former Ministers and their spouses, former Members of Parliament, former Members of the Council of State and their spouses, retired Justices of the Superior and Lower Courts, former Regional Ministers, Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), and board members, officials associated with the National Cathedral Project, former non-career ambassadors and their dependents, religious and traditional leaders, business persons and entrepreneurs, other former government functionaries no longer in active service.
The Ministry noted that any attempt to use the cancelled passports will be met with strict enforcement, including confiscation at entry and exit points. Immigration and security officials have been alerted to ensure the measure is fully implemented.
This exercise, the Ministry said, is in line with the Passports and Travel Certificates Act, 1967 (NLCD 155), specifically Sections 6 and 7, which govern the issuance, use, and revocation of official passports.
Authorities are urging all individuals still in possession of such documents to surrender them immediately, warning that failure to comply could result in further legal action.
