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AGUIDETO AFGHAN DOCUMENTS
PUBLISHEDBY:
THEFRAUDPREVENTIONUNIT
U.S.EMBASSYKABUL,AFGHANISTAN
JUNE2011
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TableofContents
TableofContents AnIntroductiontoDocumentsinAfghanistan...... 3 TheManyGovernmentsofAfghanistan–ABriefHistory...... 4 Tazkera:TheAfghanNationalID...... 5 DaoudiTazkeraExemplar...... 6 CommunistTazkeraExemplar...... 7 CurrentTazkeraExemplar...... 8 PassportsinAfghanistan...... 9 CommunistPassportExemplar...... 10 TalibanPassportExemplar...... 11 CurrentPassportExemplar...... 12 BirthCertificates...... 13 BirthCertificateExemplars...... 14 MarriageDocuments...... 15 MarriageCertificateExemplar...... 16 DivorceCertificates...... 17 SchoolDocuments...... 18 SchoolTranscriptExemplars...... 19 PoliceCertificates...... 20 Driver’sLicense...... 21 Driver’sLicenseExemplar...... 22 BankDocuments...... 23 BankDocumentExemplars...... 24 BusinessDocuments...... 25 BusinessRegistrationExemplars...... 26 Titles&LandDocuments...... 27
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AnIntroductiontoDocumentsinAfghanistan
Afghanistanhasbeentornapartbywarforoverthirtyyears.ManyAfghanshavebeenrefugees numeroustimesintheirlifeandtheslowmovementofdevelopmentfrequentlygiveswaytocorruption andfraud.Identityisnotasettledconcept.
ThecultureofAfghanistanmakesdeterminingone’sidentitydifficult.Afghannamingconventionsarea concernindeterminingidentity.ItisnotuncommonforAfghanstousedifferentnamesfordifferent circumstances.Forexample,anAfghanmaybeknownbyonenametofamilyandfriends,andanother tohis/heremployer.MostAfghansidentifythemselvesjustbyonename,and,occasionally,what appearsasasurnameiseitherafather’snameorthelastpartofalong,singlenamethatwasbroken up.AnAfghanmansometimesidentifieshimselfbyhisfirstnameandhisfather'sfirst(oronly)name. Sometimes,hechoosesashissurnamethenameofhistribe,orhisfamily'shomeregion,orsimplya wordwhosedefinitionisapositivecharacteristic.ItisnotuncommonforanAfghantoinventa surname,oftenbasedonawordwithcharacteristicstheindividuallikes(suchasexcellence,religious connotations,etc.).Womenbeforemarriagefollowthesamenamingpractices.Aftermarriage,a womaneitherreplacesherlastname(ifshehasone)withherhusband's,oraddsitafterheroriginal surname(ifshehadone),ordoesnottakeasurnameatall.Duringtheregimejustbeforethe communiststookover(PresidentDaoud'sregime),itwasillegalforAfghanstousetheirtribalnameasa surname.Whenthecommuniststookover(1978),manyAfghanswhowantedtousethisaffiliation returnedtoit.
Most,ifnotall,Afghandocumentsareripeforfraud.Theyremainhandwritten,usuallyunsealedand quitecommonlydonotcontaintrueinformation.Forexample,mostplacesofbirthonanynationalid documentorpassportarethefather’splaceofbirth,nottheactualperson’splaceofbirth,which sometimesmaynothaveevenbeeninAfghanistan.MostAfghansbornbeforethelate1990’sdonot haveadayofbirth,onlyayear,andmanywilltellyouthatissimplyanestimate.Althoughdonor countriescontinuetoworkwiththeAfghangovernmenttoimprovetheirstandardofdocuments,no majorchangeshavebeenmadesincePresidentKarzaicametopowerin2001.
ThemostcommonAfghanidentitydocumentinsideAfghanistanisthenationalid,ortazkera.Tazkeras areissuedbylocalpolicestations.Itisusuallyappliedforwhenachildreachesschoolagebutcanalso beobtainedand/ormodifiedthroughoutadulthood.Evenifitisnotobtainedormodifiedfraudulently thetazkeraisanunreliableidentitydocument.Biometricinformationislimitedtovaguephysical descriptionanditmaynotevenincludeaphoto.Biographicinformationisevenmoreopaque.Thedate ofbirthisusuallyamereestimateandtheplaceofbirthisbasedontribalorigin,nottheactuallocation ofbirth.
ThemostcommonAfghandocumentthatoneislikelytoseeoutsideofAfghanistanistheAfghan passport.Afghanpassportslacklaminationonthebiodatapage,whichishandwritten,andcanbeeasily alteredwithapen.Thephotopageisoverlaidwithasimplelaminate.Whenalegitimatechangeismade toapassporttherewillbeanofficialMinistryofInteriorstamponapageofthepassport,sometimes withahandwrittennoterelatingthechangetonameordateofbirth.WhiletheMinistryofInterior issuesregular,studentandtradepassports,theMinistryofForeignAffairsissuesofficialanddiplomatic passports.Frequently,officialanddiplomaticpassportsareissuedtoAfghanswhoarenotgovernment employees.
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TheManyGovernmentsofAfghanistan–ABriefHistory
August19,1919–AfghanistanregainscontrolofcountryfromtheBritishfrom theTreatyofRawalpindi;ledbyKingAmanullahKhan. 1923–ThefirstlegallyͲapprovedAfghanConstitutionestablished 1919Ͳ1933 January1929–KingAmanullahKhanwasforcedtoleavethecountrybyrebels PreͲZahirShahEra ledbyHabibullahKalakani,whodisagreedwithKhan’splantomodernizethe country October1929–Khan’scousin,PrinceMohammedNadirShahkillsHabibullah KalakaniandtakesthethroneasKingNadirShah 1933–1973 1933–KingNadirShahisassassinated;hisson,MohammadZahirShahtakes ReignofZahirShah overthrone
1973–1978 1973–WhileKingZahirShahwasonadiplomatictripoutofthecountry,his ReignofDaoud brotherͲinͲlawandPrimeMinister,DaoudKhan,ledabloodlesscoupandtook over as Afghanistan’s First “President” Khan April1978–ThePeople’sDemocraticPartyofAfghanistan(CommunistParty) accusesDaoudKhan’sgovernmentofkillingoneoftheirprominentmembers; theyinturnassassinatehimandhisfamily.CommunistleaderNurMohammad TakhariisnamedPresident 1978Ͳ1992 December24–1979–TheSovietUnioninvadesAfghanistantopotentially CommunistRegime bolstersupportfortheCommunistgovernment,whichhadbeeninthe crosshairsofU.S.Ͳfunded“mujahedeen”fightersaspartoftheU.S.’ColdWar strategy 1989–TheSovietswithdrawfromAfghanistanbutcontinuetosupportthe CommunistpartythroughthenͲPresidentMohammadNajibullah 1992 – 1996 March1992Ͳ1996ͲAfterthecollapseoftheUSSRandongoingdomestic turmoil,foreigninterferenceleadstoongoingcivilwarandthegrowthofthe CivilWar Talibaninthesouthernpartofthecountry,ledbyMullahOmar September1996Ͳ2001–theTalibantakesoverKabul;remaininpower 1996–2001 (althoughonlyrecognizedbyahandfulofcountries)Fightingcontinuesfor TalibanRegime controlofthenorthernpartofthecountry,undertheleadershipofAhmadShah Massoud.Womenaredeniedbasicrights,includingeducation. 2001 – Now 2001–U.S.forcesinvadeandtoppletheTalibangovernment,forcingremaining membersintohidingintheAfghanistanͲPakistanborder,PresidentHamid KarzaiGovernment Karzaiisputinpower,hewasreͲelectedin2009foranadditional5Ͳyearterm
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Tazkera:TheAfghanNationalID 1919 1933 Ͳ AfterDaoudKhantookpower,heinstitutedanationwidetazkeraprogram,as PreͲZahirShahEra describedbelow.AllAfghanswereforcedtogetanewtazkera,sothoseissued duringthisperiodwouldnotbeconsideredvalid. 1933–1973 ReignofZahirShah The "Daoudi tazkera" was issued under the regime of President Daoud in the 1970's. This document is constructed of a slightly thicker cover of white paper 1973–1978 and internal pages of a very flimsy, bad quality paper. The first page has the ReignofDaoud seal of Afghanistan and some verbiage in Pashto. The entire document is printed in Pashto, however the entries that the clerk has handwritten are usually Khan in Dari (Afghan Farsi). The serial number of the Daoudi tazkera is on the last page of the booklet. The Communist tazkera was issued from 1978 until 1990 or 1991. The outside of the booklet is made of thick, orange paper and the inside pages are white and fairly thin. The stamps in the document will say either "Democratic Republic of 1978 1992 Afghanistan" or "Republic of Afghanistan." The serial number of the Communist Ͳ Tazkera is on the first page of the booklet. The third page of the booklet has CommunistRegime basic biographical information, such as name, gender, estimated birth date, father and grandfather's names, place of birth, and marital status. The handwritten information on the seventh page includes the location of the record in the official record books of the government 1992–1996 Wereissuedduringtheperiodbutarenolongerconsideredvalidandarenot CivilWar accepted. 1996–2001 Wereissuedduringtheperiodbutarenolongerconsideredvalidandarenot TalibanRegime accepted. Theapplicationforthecurrenttazkeraconsistsofawrittenstatementfromthe father,grandfatheroruncleoftheapplicantaswellasacopyofthatfamily member'sowntazkera.Iftheapplicantisanadulthewillwritehisown statementandincludeacopyofamalefamilymember'stazkera.Ontheback oftheapplicationtwogovernmentemployedwitnessesmustcertifythatthe applicantisindeedwhoheclaimstobeandthathedoesn'thaveacriminal background.Usuallythesewitnesseswillstampboththeirstatementandthe applicant'sphotoonthefront.Thenewlycreatedtazkeraisregisteredinthe 2001–Now samebookandpagesasthefamilymemberwhosubmittedtheirowntazkera. KarzaiGovernment Therecent(current)tazkerahasaserialnumberstampedatthetopoftheseal. Province,countyanddistrictoftheapplicantareallhandwrittenonthe tazkera.Aswiththeprevioustazkeras,theprintingisinPashtoandthe handwritingisinDari.Itisimportanttonotethatthe"village"listedonthe tazkeraisnotnecessarilytheplaceofbirthoftheapplicantbecauseitis generallytakenfromthetazkeraofthefatherorgrandfather.Inthebottom, leftcornerofthetazkeraisthelistingofthepage,rowandbooknumberin whichtherecordislocatedintheofficialrecordbooksofthegovernment.
5 SENSITIVEBUTUNCLASSIFIED SENSITIVEBUTUNCLASSIFIED Daoudi Tazkera Exemplar
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PassportsinAfghanistan 1919 1933 Ͳ Werenotissued PreͲZahirShahEra 1933 – 1973 Notincirculation ReignofZahirShah 1973 – 1978 Notincirculation ReignofDaoudKhan TherearetwokindsofAfghanpassportscurrentlyincirculation.Thefirstkind ofpassportwasprintedinRussiaorEasternEuropeandfirstcameinto circulationinAfghanistanduringtheCommunistregime.Thesepassports wereusedthroughtheTalibanregime(1996Ͳ2001)andevenintothecurrent 1978Ͳ1992 administrationofPresidentKarzai.InallAfghanpassportsthepassport CommunistRegime numberispunchedthroughthepages. PassportnumbersforDiplomaticpassportsstartwith'D',Servicepassports with'SE',Studentpassportswith'ST',Tradepassportswith“TR”,andRegular passportswith'OR’or‘OA’. 1992–1996 CivilWar Towardtheendof2005(approximately)thegovernmentbeganissuing passportsprintedinLondon.Thesenewpassports,ofwhichcopiesarealso 1996–2001 includedbelow,arevirtuallyidenticaltothepreviousbatchofpassports,save forthefactthattheserialnumberisnowprintedonpage48. TalibanRegime TheformatandpaperqualityoftheCommunistpassportisthesameasthe currentpassport.Onlythesignaturesonthepassportandthestampsare differentthanonthecurrentpassport.Communistpassportswereonlyvalid foroneyearunlessextendedofficially.Businesspassportsunderthe Communistregimewerevalidforthreeyears. PassportsissuedduringtheTalibanregimehadcertainverystrictguidelines. Menwererequiredtohavealong,naturalbeardandheadcoveringinthe photo.WomenweregenerallynotissuedpassportswithinAfghanistan,butif 2001–Now aConsulateabroadissuedawomanapassporttheapplicantwasrequiredto KarzaiGovernment coverherentireheadexceptfortheface.AstheTalibangovernmentwasnot recognizedbymostothercountries,theTalibanͲissuedpassportremains invalidfortravel. Currently,theAfghangovernmentis“phasingout”theuseofstudentand tradepassportstonarrowalltraveldowntoregular,officialordiplomatic,but allofthesekindsofpassportsarestillinuseinthegeneralpopulation. SecurityFeatures:Watermarkonpassportvisapageswillglowunderblack light.Therearenoblacklightsecurityfeaturesonthebiodatapage.
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BirthCertificates
BirthcertificatesinAfghanistanarerare.Morerecently,hospitalsmayissuethembutthetazkerawillbe theprimarysourceofidentification.Eachhospitalhasitsownstyleofcertificate;thereisnostandard birthcertificateissuedinAfghanistan.ThelargestmaternityhospitalinKabulisMalalaiMaternity Hospital.
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MarriageDocuments
MarriagedocumentsbarelyexistinAfghanistan.Arrangedmarriagesarethenorm,usuallywith individualsmarryinganotherfamilymember,suchasaclosecousin.Thebrideandgroomgetengaged (“namzad”)whichtypicallylastsfor6months.Theweddingceremony,calledthe“nekah”isstrictly religiousinnatureandistypicallyperformedbythelocalreligiousleader.Toregisteramarriage,one needstoregisterwiththefamilycourt.ThevastmajorityofAfghansdonotregistertheirmarriageswith thegovernmentbecausethereligiousceremonyisconsideredsufficientfordayͲtoͲdayactivities.Itis notunusualforthebrideandgroomnevertohaveseeneachotherbeforetheweddingitself.Insome regionsofAfghanistan,polygamyisculturallyaccepted.Whenacoupleweds,thebrideandgroom moveintothehomeofthegroom’sfamily.
Recentlyissuedmarriagecertificatesaregreenorwhiteincolorandwillbefoldedintoabooklet.Itwill havethephotosofthewitnessesandinformationonthebrideandgroom,includingthefather’sand grandfather’sname,tazkeranumbers,photosandattorneyinformation,ifavailable.
ForAfghanswhowishtoregistertheirmarriageslongaftertheceremony,theycandosobygoingtothe “DocumentCourt”toreceiveanaffidavitofmarriage,whichisalegaldocumentissuedinthelocal languageonwhitepaperintheportraitorientationwithastampofthecourt.
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DivorceCertificates
Divorceisextremelyrare,andisjudgedharshlyintheculture.Usually,onlyamanisallowedtodivorce hiswife.UnderSharialaw,amancansaythreetimesthathewantsadivorce,andheisconsidered divorced.Themanmayremarryimmediately,howeverthewomanmustwaitthreemonthstomake suresheisnotpregnant.Awomancandivorceherhusbandifheisimpotent,cannotprovideforher,or morerecently,ifheabusesher.Tobeabletodivorceforabuse,however,thewomanmustreportitto thepoliceandgotoawomen’sshelter.Shecannotreturntoherfamily;shewillbearrestedasshedid notgetherhusband’spermissiontovisitthem.Giventhatsofewmarriagesareregistered,thereare evenfewerdivorces.Thestigmaissostrong,however,particularlyintheconservativeregions,that mostwillremainmarried,nomatterhowdifficult,toavoidit.Ifacoupledoesdivorce,theycanobtaina divorceaffidavitfromtheDocumentCourt.Similartoamarriageaffidavit,itwillbealegaldocument issuedinthelocallanguageonwhitepaperintheportraitorientationwithastampofthecourt.
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SchoolDocuments
TheeducationalsysteminAfghanistandiffersmarkedlybyregionandbyeconomicclass.Hundredsof schoolsremainclosedthroughoutthecountryduetosecuritythreatsfromtheTaliban.
RecentschooltranscriptsareusuallytwoͲsided,onesideinthelocallanguageandoneinEnglish.There willalmostalwaysbeaphotoofthestudentonthetranscript.Scoresareoutof100butaresetona heavycurve.Between1995Ͳ2001,undertheTaliban,millionsofAfghansfledthecountrytoPakistan andIran.Someenrolledinlocalschoolsandmanywere“selfͲtaught”inrefugeecamps.Forthosewho stayed,girlswereforbiddenfromattendingschoolduringtheperiod.Behighlysuspiciousofanyfemale showingarecordofattendinganyschoolundertheTaliban.
AlthoughthemajorityofAfghansareilliterate,themajorityarealsobilingualortrilingual.Mostcan speaktheDari(Persian)language,thoughanotherlanguage,suchasPashtoorUzbekimaybetheir nativetongue.Englishisgraduallybeingtaughtinupperclassschools,thoughmostyoungpeople learnedtheirEnglishduringtheirtimeasarefugeeinPakistan.
AllhighschooltranscriptsnowgothroughtheMinistryofEducation,notthroughtheschools themselves.Thetranscriptsareinthelandscapeorientationononesideandwillcontainaphotoofthe studentandthestudent’sinformationwritteninDari,PashtoandEnglish.Theyarestampedwiththe MinistryofEducationseal.Theothersideisinportraitorientationandwilllistthecoursestakenin grades10Ͳ12.ItwillbesignedbyboththeSecondaryEducationPresidentandtheSchoolPrincipal.
Inhighschool,juniorandsenioryearstudentstakeanexamtodeterminewhichsubjectstheyshould studyincollege.Iftheydonotscorehighenough,theywillnotbeacceptedintoauniversity.
ThetopuniversitiesinAfghanistanare:
KabulUniversity(Kabul)
KabulMedicalUniversity(Kabul)
KabulPolytechnicUniversity(Kabul)
AmericanUniversity(Kabul)
BalkhUniversity(Kabul)
NangarharUniversity(Jalalabad–wellknownforitsmedicalprograms)
HeratUniversity(Herat)
KardanHigherEducationInstitute(Kabul)
BakhtarHigherEducationInstitute(Kabul)
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PoliceCertificates
Policecertificatesare,forthemostpart,completelyunavailable.Somerecentrecordsmaybeavailable, butquestiontheauthenticityascorruptionremainsamajorproblem.Ifissued,thecertificatewould haveastampfromthecity’spolicestation,writteninthelocallanguageonwhitepaper.Afghan Embassiesandmissionsabroadapparentlyprovidea“policecertificates.”However,astheseareissued abroad,theauthenticityisunclear.
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Driver’sLicense
Gettingadriver’slicenseinAfghanistanissimilartomostothercountries.Onemustbeatleast18years oldtoapply.Bothmenandwomencanobtainlicenses.Toobtainalicense,Afghanstakea15Ͳday course,andpassbothawrittenanddrivingexam.Theypayalicensefeeandtakeaneyeexam.
Thedriver’slicenseitselfisathreeͲpagebookletmadeoutofbluepaperwiththewords“Permisde Conduire”onthefront.Thelicenseisnational,soalicensedissuedinMazarͲeͲSharifwilllookidentical toalicenseissuedinKabul.Thefirstpagewillhaveidentifyingfeaturessuchasphoto,name,father’s name,tazkeranumber,dateofbirthandbloodtype.Itisunsealed.Thesecondpageconsistsoffive vehicleclassesforthelicense;acheckwillbenexttoeachclassofvehiclethatthepersonisallowedto drive.Thethirdpageisa“checkerboard”typecardforviolations.
Incertaincircumstances,adriver’slicensecanbeproofofidentificationbutusuallyonlyasasecondary sourcetothetazkeraitself.
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BankDocuments
Inthepastdecade,Afghanistanhasbecomemorereliantonbanks.ManyAfghansstillprefertokeep theirmoneyintheirhomesorbusinesses,particularlyinruralareas,wheretheymaynothaveanother choice.BankstatementsarereadilyavailableandAfghanscanopenaccountsinthelocalcurrency (Afghani)orinanothercurrency,suchasU.S.dollarsorEuros.Contractorsandimporters/exporters makeupalargeportionoftheAfghaneconomyandanybankstatementsfromtheseprofessionswill showlargeebbsandflows.BankstatementswillalwaysbecomputerͲgeneratedandcontainanofficial stampfromthebank.Aletterfromthebankiscommon,explaininghowlongtheindividualinquestion hashadanaccountandifithasremainedingoodstanding.ATMcardsarerare,butmembershipcards areprovidedtoallaccountholders.
ThelargestbanksinAfghanistanare:
AfghanistanInternationalBank(AIB)
KabulBank(currentlyfacingfinancialdifficulties,manyAfghanshavepulledtheirmoneyfromit)
AziziBank
AfghanistanBank(Afghanistan’sFederalBank)
AlFalaBank
MaiwanBank
GhazanfarBank
PashtonayBank
StandardCharteredBank
BankͲeͲMile
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BusinessDocuments
TherearemanysmallbusinessesinAfghanistan,andmanyarerelatedtothewar,e.g.importing supplies,construction,andlogistics.Manybusinessesareinformalandarenotregistered.Inthepast fewyears,theAfghanMinistryofCommercehasencouragedregistrationofallbusinesses.The registrationisprintedonaplainwhitesheetofpaperwithalandscapeorientation,willbestamped,and willhaveaphotooftheownerandanypartners.TheyaretypicallytwoͲsided,oneinthelocallanguage andtheotherinEnglish.Theyaretypicallylaminated.Therewillbeanumberthatcorrespondstoa registration,sothesedocumentscanbeconfirmedwiththeMinistry.However,thereisnorecordof whetherthecompanygoesoutofbusinessorchangesitsname,partners,etc.
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Titles&LandDocuments
Landdocumentsarealmostalwaysinaman’sname.ThedocumentwillbeportraitͲorientedandwill typicallybeinthelocallanguage,describingthelocation,squarefeetandnumberofbedroomsofthe property.Translations,however,arereadilyavailable.Asmentionedearlier,whenamanmarries,he andhiswifemoveintohisparents’home.Theywillstaythereuntiltheparentspassawayandthetitle willbetransferredtotheson.AsmallpercentageofAfghansmoveoutoftheirparents’homespriorto this.Landdocumentsaresimilartothemarriageanddivorceaffidavits–acourtstatementissuedon whitepaperinthelocallanguage.
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