What are you supposed to do with old passports? I know they have the corner cut off but should I burn them or shred them?

Posted by Tacklestiffener@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 23 comments

I'm having a big clear out and I've just found 6 old passports.

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diond09@reddit

Keep them so you can look back at the photo from your previous passports and realise that you weren't as bad looking as you are compared to your present passport.

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Tacklestiffener@reddit (OP)

and realise that you weren't as bad looking

even with big 1980's hair like Liberace?

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Tzunamitom@reddit

I can’t believe Liberace was gay. I mean, women loved him - I didn’t see that one coming, no.

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Well, he successfully sued the Daily Mirror for libel, for having had the audacity to suggest that he was gay. What the Mirror actually said was: "...the summit of sex - the pinnacle of masculine, feminine and neuter. Everything that he, she and it can ever want... a deadly, winking, sniggering, snuggling, chromium-plated, scent-impregnated, luminous, quivering, giggling, fruit-flavoured, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love."

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Tacklestiffener@reddit (OP)

My friend was cabin crew and met him in the 70's. She said he was really, nice, came out to the galley for a chat and super friendly but she said he was definitely gay.

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Tzunamitom@reddit

I guess the giveaway was that he came out to the galley!

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gogginsbulldog1979@reddit

Sell them to Albanian people smugglers for £200.

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dirtymartiniii@reddit

Keep them! Aside from the memories they spark, some countries will ask you if you have previously visited the country / dates of your last visit / previous visa details when you apply for a new visa. India does for sure, I'm sure others do too. If you are able to check in your passport it's a lot easier than guessing or getting the details wrong.

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mr-seamus@reddit

Some dodgy Russian sailor wanted to buy my expired passport. This was a good 20 years ago and I did think about it for all of ten seconds.

I don't know what he had planned but I didn't fancy being on an MI6 watch list.

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HenryKjnr@reddit

Russian sailor you say?

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28374woolijay@reddit

Keep them. There are several unlikely reasons why you might need the details they contain at some point.

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Tacklestiffener@reddit (OP)

several unlikely reasons

"I don't care if you are a cold case investigator. Look! I was in Ibiza in 1974"

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LittleSadRufus@reddit

Is this your confession you're the Ibiza Strangler? They've been working on that case for fifty years.

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LittleSadRufus@reddit

Is this your confession you're the Ibiza Strangler? They've been working on that case for fifty years.

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Delicious-Cut-7911@reddit

cut them up into small pieces. I kept the passport photos to remind me how hideous they were.

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Autumnwood@reddit

If you like papercraft, you can make mini "journals" out of them. Many ideas on YouTube.

Otherwise, cut through them and dispose. The very personal info page I would shred, or cut into pieces and throw them in different cans.

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Bubbly-Thought-2349@reddit

I keep ‘em. I’ve got some uncommon visas and border stamps in the old ones. They’re nice mementoes if nothing else.

Also I paid £42 for a passport in 2004 vs £89 the other day. Ouch

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Saurabh0791@reddit

You should always keep them

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AirBiscuitBarrel@reddit

I don't really know that you're supposed to do anything with them. I believe they return them because you may still have valid visas in an expired passport, but if that's not the case, then you don't need them. While they're technically still government property, therefore not really yours to get rid of, the chances of being asked to return them is nil, so I suppose you can chuck them.

If you are going to dispose of them, you should probably shred and/or burn them, just to be safe.

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Accurate_Prompt_8800@reddit

If you want to keep them to look back, then keep them safe somewhere. Otherwise shred it, don’t just throw it away for identity theft issues and don’t chuck in recycling as I don’t think they are recyclable.

This could have been googled.

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