Sovereign Military Order of Malta passport

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta passport is a travel document issued to officials and diplomats of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM). The order issues biometric passports which are fully ICAO9303 compliant.[1]

Not to be confused with Maltese passport.
Sovereign Military Order of Malta passport
The front cover of a contemporary Sovereign Military Order of Malta diplomatic biometric passport
TypePassport
Issued by Sovereign Military Order of Malta
PurposeIdentification
EligibilitySovereign Military Order of Malta

The application and printing processes are handled by the Österreichische Staatsdruckerei in Vienna, Austria.

Types of passport

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta issues two types of passport.

Diplomatic passports

Diplomatic passports of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta are issued only to the members of the Sovereign Council (the government of the Order) and to representatives of the Order's diplomatic corps (heads and members of diplomatic missions abroad as well as spouses of full-time diplomats and their minor children). The validity of the passport is strictly linked to the duration of the assignment. As of February 2018 there were approximately 500 passports in circulation.[2] The numerous other members and volunteers of the Order remain citizens of their own respective countries with their national passports.[3]

Among those travelling with an Order of Malta diplomatic passport:

  1. The Grand Master (vacant since April 2020).
  2. The Grand Commander (since May 2019 Fra’ Ruy Gonçalo do Valle Peixoto de Villas Boas who also has a Portuguese passport).
  3. The Grand Chancellor (since May 2014 Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager who also has a German passport).

Service passports

Service passports of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta are issued only to people who are in charge of a special mission within the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. The validity of the passport is strictly linked to the duration of the assignment. Currently, ten service passports are in use.

Physical appearance

Passport covers carry the text Ordre Souverain Militaire de Malte above the coat of arms, and Passeport Diplomatique or Passeport de Service below it.[4] Diplomatic passports are red, whereas service passports are black.

The country-code XOM has been assigned by the ICAO after consultation with the SMOM and the machine-readable zone thus starts with P<XOM.[5]

Acceptance
See also: Visa requirements for holders of passports issued by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta

The SMOM has diplomatic relations with 110 countries,[6] which therefore accept the passport. In the Schengen area (where most of the extraterritorialities of the order are located) it is recognized by twenty-three (except for Denmark, France and Norway) out of 26 members.[7]

See also

References
  1. http://www.bundesheer.at/truppendienst/ausgaben/artikel.php?id=433
  2. The Order of Malta clarifies press reported figure on passports issued: currently 500 passports in circulation
  3. Sack, John (1959). Report from Practically Nowhere. Harper & Brothers. p. 140. ISBN 9780595089185.
  4. "Sovereign Military Order of Malta issues new e-passport". C. Haager (Keesing Journal of Documents and Identity). 2005. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
  5. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/prado/en/XOM-AS-02001/image-226092.html
  6. The order's official website lists them in this table Archived 2010-08-07 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  7. "Table of travel documents entitling the holder to cross the external borders and which may be endorsed with a visa". Council of the European Union. 17 June 2010. Archived from the original on 20 November 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
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