Germany has announced that it will deny entry to Uruguayans possessing passports issued after April 23, 2025.
This is a result of the fact Uruguayan passports issued after this date do not indicate their holders’ birthplace.
Passports issued after this date also have the field of “Nationality” replaced by “Nationality/Citizenship,” assigning the code “URY” to both natural and legal citizens of the country. However, it is the lack of “birthplace” field which has sparked concern amongst the German and French governments.
The German ambassador to Uruguay, Stefan Duppel, announced on Wednesday that Uruguayans with these passports may not enter Germany, “even for short stays.” He added: “Currently, visa applications with such passports are not being accepted.”
Meanwhile, France has stated that it is currently “unable to accept visa applications” from Uruguayans possessing the new model of passport, according to El País. This is while the French authorities examine specimens of the new passports. France is yet to provide any explicit guidance regarding whether Uruguayans possessing these new passports will be able to enter the country for short-term tourism purposes.
Uruguay’s president, Yamandú Orsi, told journalists: “It’s coming more from Germany’s side; it is not so much the case with France.” He added that the removal of “birthplace” on the newest Uruguayan passports “was in line with a protocol that had been suggested to us,” saying: “We are always willing to change it if something complicates things.”
He also acknowledged that Germany’s decision “is not a minor issue,” stating, “We’ll resolve it.”
No other countries have issued statements on Uruguay’s amended passports.
Uruguay’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs claims that the passport changes are “in line with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regulations,” and “comply with international human rights standards regarding the facilitation of human mobility, free movement, and identity, without discrimination.”
Under ICAO guidance, “birthplace” is an “optional” field on passports.
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs also stated that the amendments “were promptly communicated to all Uruguayan embassies in Montevideo and abroad.”
Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Internal Affairs are now “working to find a solution that does not harm Uruguayans and guarantees their free movement.”
One Uruguayan who has lived in both Uruguay and Germany told Latin America Reports that he found Germany’s decision to be an “overreaction,” especially given that “all other countries, even other EU countries, are accepting Uruguayans.”
The man, whose name has been anonymized for privacy reasons, explained that living in Uruguay and Germany is “really different,” citing more complex bureaucracy in the European country as an example, saying “[the German authorities] expect everything to be exactly perfect.”
He added: “Germany should be the one accepting our decisions as a country, because we have full discretion with what to do with our passports, right?”
Featured image credit:
Image: Carrasco Airport, Uruguay
Photographer: Andrés Franchi Ugartemendía
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:URUGUAY,BIENVENIDO_AL_MUNDO._Aeropuerto_Internacional_de_Carrasco-_panoramio.jpg
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en
