Ombudsman's investigation led to reimbursement for forced passport replacement
The complainant, who lives in the center of Israel, could not find his passport, and since he thought that in any case the passport had expired, he made an appointment to renew it, paying in advance for the service.
When the complainant arrived at the service bureau of the Population and Immigration Authority (Population Authority), he was told that his passport was valid until 2025 and it was thus not possible to renew it. He was also told that if he did not find the passport, he could fill out a form declaring that the passport was missing or stolen, and a new passport would then be issued for him.
The complainant pointed out that he had requested not to issue a new passport for him prior to his making another search for his existing passport, and left the bureau. He added that a few minutes later his mother informed him that the passport was at her house, where the complainant had lived in the past.
The complainant was reimbursed with the passport renewal fee (a procedure which as said was not executed) and assumed that this was the end of the matter. However, when he arrived at Ben Gurion Airport with his family in order to fly abroad, he was informed that his passport had been declared stolen and thus rescinded.
After much effort, and with the assistance of the Population Authority personnel at the airport, the complainant managed to take out a temporary passport and board the flight. He was forced to pay a NIS 1,175 fee for the temporary passport. The complainant contacted the Population Authority and asked to receive a refund of the sum he had paid for the temporary passport, but did not receive an answer, He therefore requested the assistance of the Office of the Ombudsman.
Following the Office of the Ombudsman's inquiry with the Population Authority, the latter approved a refund of the fee that the complainant had paid for the temporary passport at the airport.
