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Hello,
My question is twofold:
1) There are water marks on my passport, visible on every page but the letters are still very legible. It's not badly damaged or anything, just that the marks are evident on all the pages, including on the visa photo stamp.
The water damage happened the last time I was in India, which was last year. When I came back to the U.S., the officer at the port of entry gave me a bit of a hard time about the damaged passport, but he was still able to scan the passport and nothing to suggest that the passport wasn't valid. I came home and haven't thought about it since.
Until now, when my friend noticed my passport and suggested that it might not be valid. I am travelling to India in November again. I know it's hard to say anything without seeing the passport, but my question is, what constitutes a damaged passport (one that needs to be replaced) ? If the reason is that the passport won't scan because of the water marks, then they were able to scan my passport last time without any issues. So, am I safe? Or, is it subjective meaning that a different office may deem the passport invalid even though it scans?
2) If it comes to it, I am thinking of getting my passport replaced in India. Now, do I have to get my new passport stamped at the U.S. consulate with the visa? Or, can I just have 2 passports - the new empty one and the old one with the visa? (not sure how it will work if the old passport can't be scanned because of the damage?)
Thanks,
Prasanna
My question is twofold:
1) There are water marks on my passport, visible on every page but the letters are still very legible. It's not badly damaged or anything, just that the marks are evident on all the pages, including on the visa photo stamp.
The water damage happened the last time I was in India, which was last year. When I came back to the U.S., the officer at the port of entry gave me a bit of a hard time about the damaged passport, but he was still able to scan the passport and nothing to suggest that the passport wasn't valid. I came home and haven't thought about it since.
Until now, when my friend noticed my passport and suggested that it might not be valid. I am travelling to India in November again. I know it's hard to say anything without seeing the passport, but my question is, what constitutes a damaged passport (one that needs to be replaced) ? If the reason is that the passport won't scan because of the water marks, then they were able to scan my passport last time without any issues. So, am I safe? Or, is it subjective meaning that a different office may deem the passport invalid even though it scans?
2) If it comes to it, I am thinking of getting my passport replaced in India. Now, do I have to get my new passport stamped at the U.S. consulate with the visa? Or, can I just have 2 passports - the new empty one and the old one with the visa? (not sure how it will work if the old passport can't be scanned because of the damage?)
Thanks,
Prasanna
