Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs has recalled nearly 13,000 passports after a software update caused a printing defect.

The printing error makes the documents non-compliant with international travel standards and potentially unreadable at automated border gates.

Missing 'IRL' code

The government said the affected passports, issued between December 23 and January 6, may fail at eGates and border control systems worldwide, prompting a global alert through the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and a mass re-issuance program.

"The Passport Office has confirmed that 12,904 Irish passports issued between 23 December 2025 and 6 January 2026 [inclusive] may not fully meet international travel standards," announced the government.

"The issue was caused by a software update, which could affect use at border control or eGates."

Holders are being asked to return their passport books (and cards, where applicable) for free replacement, with new documents to be issued within approximately 10 working days.

"This will ensure that you do not face any issues with future travel. You do not need to reapply for a new passport," the official notice states.

While the Department of Foreign Affairs has not explicitly specified where the missing "IRL" appears, the reference to ICAO compliance and potential failures at eGates strongly suggests the error affects the machine-readable zone (MRZ), where the three-letter issuing-state code is mandatory under ICAO Doc 9303.

What is an MRZ?

The MRZ is the two-line block of text at the bottom of the passport's bio page that is scanned by airline systems, border control kiosks, and eGates. It encodes critical data such as the document type, issuing country, passport number, nationality, date of birth, and checksums used to verify the document's integrity.

If the issuing-state code "IRL" is missing or malformed in this zone, automated systems may reject the passport outright, even if the visual biographical page and embedded chip appear normal.

Those travelling imminently or overseas residents can get in touch wih the Passport Office customer service via email at [email protected] or call +353 (0) 1 613 1780.