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Photo ID (not passport or driving licence)

Sprout0808
Posts: 18 Forumite

My father in law may is no longer able to drive so doesn't have a driving licence and no longer has a passport. If he needs any photo id for any formal reason, what are his options? Will he have to get a passport?
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Sprout0808 said:My father in law may is no longer able to drive so doesn't have a driving licence and no longer has a passport. If he needs any photo id for any formal reason, what are his options? Will he have to get a passport?In my experience, yes. The only other option I've found is a bus pass, but it;s not widely accepted.I've recently encouraged my father to renew his passport in anticipation of when he's going to have to hand in his driving licence, even though he'll never use it to travel.In my view, it's a small price to pay to avoid a lot of struggles when trying to prove ID.3
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There are many alternatives, see this page regarding ID now required to vote:
https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id
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Sprout0808 said:My father in law may is no longer able to drive so doesn't have a driving licence and no longer has a passport. If he needs any photo id for any formal reason, what are his options? Will he have to get a passport?
e.g. many banks (especially app or online based) require either passport or driving licence.
Shame this is just after the passport price increase.0 -
As TadleyBaggie says, there are many alternatives for local voting but for any other purpose the options may be more limited. A passport should be safe but there should also always be some alternative.
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I never understand why a passport for ID purposes has to be up to date if you look similar to the photo.1
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westv said:I never understand why a passport for ID purposes has to be up to date if you look similar to the photo.how would that work in practice though ?If you're drawing up list of requirements for an ID check, you can't really say 'a current one, oh, but you can also use an expired one if it still looks like you' !Presumably the ten-year timescale for both passport and photo driving renewals is set because it's been established that that is a realistic gap of time in which the vast majority of people are still easily recognisable from their photos, but beyond that recognition is more difficult.0
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p00hsticks said:westv said:I never understand why a passport for ID purposes has to be up to date if you look similar to the photo.how would that work in practice though ?If you're drawing up list of requirements for an ID check, you can't really say 'a current one, oh, but you can also use an expired one if it still looks like you' !Presumably the ten-year timescale for both passport and photo driving renewals is set because it's been established that that is a realistic gap of time in which the vast majority of people are still easily recognisable from their photos, but beyond that recognition is more difficult.0
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westv said:I never understand why a passport for ID purposes has to be up to date if you look similar to the photo.
Older passports may have been easier to forge, and expired ones are hard to check for validity.0 -
westv said:p00hsticks said:westv said:I never understand why a passport for ID purposes has to be up to date if you look similar to the photo.how would that work in practice though ?If you're drawing up list of requirements for an ID check, you can't really say 'a current one, oh, but you can also use an expired one if it still looks like you' !Presumably the ten-year timescale for both passport and photo driving renewals is set because it's been established that that is a realistic gap of time in which the vast majority of people are still easily recognisable from their photos, but beyond that recognition is more difficult.Modern facial recognition software has no trouble distinguishing a beard or other facial hair - likewise glasses, hats etc.Some places will accept an expired passport as photo ID - purely depends how robust their ID protocols are. Others will only accept current photo ID and will struggle to verify your identity if you are unable to provide it.Working in an industry where we are required to ID people daily, I would always advise people that it is worth the cost of a passport or driving licence for ID purposes, even if they never plan to use them for their otherwise intended purposes. It's £82.50 to renew a passport online which equates to £8.25 per year - that has to be worth it for the potential hassle it will save. Driving licences are only £34.0
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NedS said:Working in an industry where we are required to ID people daily, I would always advise people that it is worth the cost of a passport or driving licence for ID purposes, even if they never plan to use them for their otherwise intended purposes. It's £82.50 to renew a passport online which equates to £8.25 per year - that has to be worth it for the potential hassle it will save. Driving licences are only £34.I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on Debt Free Wannabe and Old Style Money Saving boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
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