The travel document as a passport substitute is issued by the border authorities. Border authorities are the Federal Police and other state and federal authorities responsible for policing cross-border traffic.

As a German citizen, you may be prohibited from leaving Germany if you are not carrying a valid passport or passport substitute when crossing the border. Such a situation is possible if, for example, your passport or identity card has expired and you only notice this shortly before you start your journey. in these acute emergencies, the border authorities can issue you with a travel document as a passport substitute before you start your journey.

With the travel document as a passport substitute, you can leave Germany as a German citizen and then re-enter the country. The travel document as a passport substitute is generally only valid for the duration of the respective trip, but for a maximum of three months. It becomes invalid upon re-entry unless it has been issued for several entries and exits. It is therefore not a full replacement for a passport.

You can only enter another country with a travel document as a passport replacement if the country recognizes your document as a travel document. The foreign state is under no obligation to recognize your document. There is also the possibility that airlines may refuse to take you on board with this travel document.

On the website of the Federal Police you will find a list of countries that recognize the travel document as a passport substitute without restriction or in conjunction with an expired photo ID (e.g. passport or identity card). Please note, however, that foreign border authorities may change this practice at short notice.
You have no legal entitlement to the issue of a travel document as a passport replacement. The competent border authority will decide whether to issue you with this emergency document.
Issuance may be refused, for example, if:

• you want to travel to a country that does not recognize the travel document as a passport substitute or
• the passport authority can issue you with a temporary identity card or passport on request.

Note: In the following countries, it is not the Federal Police but a state or federal authority that is responsible for carrying out police checks on cross-border traffic:

• in the Free State of Bavaria at the airports of Nuremberg and Memmingen as well as the airfields that are authorized as border crossing points, the Bavarian Border Police is responsible,
• in the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg at the port, the Hamburg Water Police is responsible,
• in Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein in various ports and in Baden-Württemberg at Friedrichshafen Airport, the customs administration is responsible.

You can apply for a travel document as a passport replacement in person at the border authority, such as the Federal Police at the airport. You can also send the application to the border authority online in advance to speed up the process. In any case, you must appear in person at the border authority before starting your journey.