Posted by BarbaraL_CA on 1/2/07 5:32pm
Msg #168727

US Passport

Has anyone looked at or used a recently issued US Passport for ID?
A client of mine showed me hers and there is NO place for the Signature!!!!!

The older passports had a signature page as the last page of the passport (just above the picture and ID info page).

So... if we can us US Passports for ID, how do we verify the signature? hmmmmmm.

Reply by PAW on 1/2/07 5:46pm
Msg #168729

Simple answer, from a notarial aspect, is that we are not verifying the signature, only the identity of the signer. So if the signer states that it is their signature (acknowledgment on a previously signed document) or we witness them signing, then we did our job.

But, from a Signing Agents perspective, we should be able to ascertain at least similarity to the signature. That's why many companies want two different forms of id. Not only to verify identity, but similarity in the signature.

Reply by BarbaraL_CA on 1/2/07 5:55pm
Msg #168731

Re: US Passport - you're right PAW...

I hadn't really thought about it like you explained it, but when I looked in the CA Handbook it states the following (note, the only place a signature is required is on other state approved identification card):

"A. Paper Identification Documents – Identity of the signer can be established by the
notary public’s reasonable reliance on the presentation of any one of the following documents,
provided that the identification document is current or has been issued within five years
(Civil Code section 1185(c)(3) & (4)):
1. An identification card or driver’s license issued by the California Department of Motor
Vehicles;
2. A United States passport;
3. Other State-approved identification card, consisting of any one of the following, provided
that it also contains a photograph, description of the person, signature of the person, and
an identifying number –
(a) A passport issued by a foreign government, provided that it has been stamped by the
U.S. Immigration or Naturalization Service or the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services;
(b) A driver’s license issued by another state or by a Canadian or Mexican public agency
authorized to issue drivers’ licenses;
(c) An identification card issued by another state;
(d) A military identification card;
(e) An inmate identification card issued by California Department of Corrections, if the
inmate is in custody.

Reply by Ernest__CT on 1/2/07 5:46pm
Msg #168730

All those that I've seen recently have had signatures.

Reply by Terri_CA on 1/2/07 6:07pm
Msg #168733

Barbara

I just looked at mine, it's on the page facing the page with the picture and info. However, my girlfriend just got hers and I believe there's a signature page somewhere in the US Passport. I know, because I pointed to it and told her to sign it when she was showing me her "new" passport.

Terri
Lancaster, CA

Reply by Joe Ewing on 1/2/07 6:16pm
Msg #168736

The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hinderance and in case of need to give lawful aid and protection

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Signature of Bearer

A US passport is not valid unless signed.

Unless of course it's a fake!

Reply by Poppy on 1/3/07 10:07am
Msg #168820

Joe, was the statement A US passport is not valid unless

signed from you or was it on the passport? I'm curious because I got slammed by a signing service a while back because I wouldn't accept the passport as an ID for the wife because it was not signed.
I personally hate accepting passports because I'm not very familiar with them and there really isn't any book to go to (that I've found anyway) that shows you the various passports and what to look for... (I don't have one. Can you tell?) ;-)
I sent an email a while back to the to the state department asking what constitutes a valid passport... This was the reply I got...

A valid passport would be one that has not expired, not damaged, and matches the individual who is using it. If there is any kind of damage, it would not be considered valid. Visit our website for what a passport looks like.

If you have further questions, please email us at [e-mail address]. Please include all prior messages or correspondence in your reply so we can review what has previously taken place. If you prefer, you may call us at (877) 487-2778 or for TDD/TTY users 1-888-874-7793. Our contact center is open Monday through Friday 7am to 12am EST excluding Federal Holidays.


Thank you.
National Passport Information Center
6667

It doesn't say anything about needing to be signed... I sent a reply asking about the signature but have not received a reply as of yet... It's been a while so I may have to send another one...

Reply by PAW on 1/3/07 10:21am
Msg #168822

Signature required

Just below the signature, there is (at least on the ones I have seen) it states:

"Signature of bearer/signature du titulaire"
"NOT VALID UNTIL SIGNED"

Reply by Poppy on 1/3/07 10:44am
Msg #168825

Thanks Paw, can I get your opinion... If it wasn't signed

would it be acceptable if they signed infront of you... In my case the signature line was there but it was not signed...(Don't recall if it said not valid unless signed or not, it's been a while) SS said I should of had her sign it and be done with it... I wasn't sure if it's supposed to be signed infront of the passport people or not... Like a drivers license....

I think I'll go get a passport just so I can go through the process....

Reply by Susan Fischer on 1/3/07 11:17am
Msg #168834

Re: Thanks Paw, can I get your opinion... If it wasn't signed

Poppy, the first one I got back in the late 60s, you signed across the bottom of your photo, as I recall. This last one came via mail, and I signed when I received it. Signature line was on facing photo page. (2004) Instructions tell you to sign. I think people just forget, like forgetting to sign your car registration (also, "not valid unless signed."

Reply by Poppy on 1/3/07 11:22am
Msg #168835

Thanks Susan... I appreciate the input. :-) n/m

Reply by JanetK_CA on 1/5/07 3:43am
Msg #169323

Re: Thanks Paw, can I get your opinion... If it wasn't signed

You're right. When I started reading this thread, I pulled out my passport (curious about expiration date - '09) and lo and behold, it wasn't signed! I never noticed and no one has ever mentioned anything to me about it the few times I've used it. BTW, I heard from a travel agent friend a short while back that Passports will soon be - or are already - required to re-enter this country in situations where they weren't previously needed (like the Mexican border.) So it probably IS a good idea to get one if you don't already have one.

Reply by Joe Ewing on 1/3/07 11:34am
Msg #168842

Re: Joe, was the statement A US passport is not valid unless

Well Poppy I have three passports sitting on my desk now. Mine from 1976 another from 1988 and my newest passport I obtained in October of 2006. All look similar except for my photograph that changes dramatically on each one. One thing each has in common though is that Signature of Bearer line on the "hereby requests" page.

Also my new one has the languages in English, French AND Spanish.

To ID someone, Passports are read vertically and the photo is on the bottom left of the cover. Page one is also printed vertically and the signature line is at the bottom center above the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Absent from the important information page on my older passports is part 4. Of the BEFORE YOU TRAVEL ABROAD section that states: 4. Your Passport: Make sure you have a SIGNED, valid passport

Reply by Poppy on 1/3/07 12:21pm
Msg #168851

That's interesting Joe... Thanks for the additional info.

Isn't it fun looking back at old photos... Just don't do it with the kids, it's hard on the old ego to keep hearing the shock in their voice or the dreaded
"Mom, that's you! You were so pretty"