Division 3 Printing techniques

The following printing techniques shall be used:

1. A..

   Background printing:

   • two-tone guilloches or equivalent structures,

   • rainbow colouring, where possible fluorescent,

   • UV-fluorescent overprinting,

   • effective anti-counterfeiting and anti-falsification motifs (especially on the biographical data page) with optional use of microprinting,

   • reagent inks must be used on paper passport or travel document pages and stickers,

   • if the paper of the passport or travel document is well protected against attempts at tampering, the use of reagent inks is optional.

2. B..

   Form printing

   With integrated microprinting (unless already included in background printing).

3. C..

   Numbering

   On all pages inside the passport or travel document a unique document number should be printed (where possible with a special style of figures or typeface and in UV-fluorescent ink), or perforated or, in passport cards, a unique document number should be integrated using the same technique as for the biographical data. It is recommended that in passport cards the unique document number is visible on both sides of the card. If a sticker is used for biographical data the unique document number should be printed using fluorescent ink, and a special style of figures or typeface is obligatory.

   If stickers or non-laminated paper inside pages are used for biographical data, intaglio printing with latent image effect, microtext and ink with optically variable properties and a DOVID (diffractive optically variable image device) shall also be employed. Additional optically variable security devices shall also be used on passport cards made entirely of a synthetic substrate, at least through the use of a DOVID or equivalent measures.