You’re on an overseas trip when your most essential piece of travel goes missing: your passport. Your passport is like a physical extension of your identity, and to be stranded without it abroad can make you feel helpless and confused about what to do next.
Do not worry, Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency outlines what you need to do to minimise the impact of the loss of your passport.
Take copies of your documents
The rule of thumb is to anticipate the best and prepare for the worst. Every traveller should acknowledge that losing his or her passport is a real possibility, no matter how careful you are. Before you take off on your adventure, you need to prepare your worst-case scenario passport-losing kit by taking photocopies of your passport and other pieces of identification.
Contact the embassy or consulate
You should get the location and contact details of your embassy or consulate. Do not hesitate to contact them and report the loss of your passport. They will let you know the process for you to get a new one. The sooner, the better.
Assemble your personal details
This is yet another step you can take to tackle the loss of your passport. Do this by assembling documents that you might need to acquire a replacement passport abroad. For instance, carry an extra passport photo with you. In addition to a spare passport photo, be sure to have some sort of evidence of your citizenship and a detailed copy of your travel itinerary with you at all times.
File a police report
When replacing a lost passport, you might be asked to provide a police report. If you have been pickpocketed, you will definitely want to file for one as soon as possible. Not every country’s police department works the same: policies and procedures might be different, and language barriers can be a source of frustration. A little patience will go a long way.