# How HR and payroll teams request a US passport from new hires

Source: https://dokutrak.com/requests/hr-payroll/passport
Author: Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak
Published: 2026-11-11
Language: en-US

> When a role involves business travel, ask the new hire for a copy of their passport photo page so trips are booked under their exact name. Be clear it is not Form I-9 verification: the employee chooses which acceptable documents to present and shows the originals. A U.S. passport alone is a List A document, but you may not insist on one.

## Why HR and payroll teams need a US passport

Travel bookings must match the passport exactly, and the onboarding file needs the expiration date to plan trips. Form I-9 works differently: the employee shows originals in person, or remotely under the DHS-authorized procedure if you are enrolled in E-Verify, and picks from the Lists of Acceptable Documents. Demanding a passport, or any specific document, for the I-9 is not allowed.

## What exactly to ask for

A color copy of the photo page of the current passport, with the full name, date of birth, passport number and expiration date readable. Ask for it only for the purpose you named, such as travel, and store it with the same care as other identity documents.

## What to check when it arrives

- The name matches the name in payroll and on travel bookings, including middle names.
- The expiration date leaves enough time for the travel the role requires.
- Your request did not tell the employee which document to use for Form I-9.

## Email to send your client

Subject: Your passport photo page for travel bookings

```text
Hi [Client name],

Welcome to the team. Your role includes some travel, so I would like a copy of your passport photo page to book trips under your exact name.

This is not for your Form I-9. For the I-9 you choose which documents to show from the list on the form, and you bring the originals when you start.

A clear photo or scan of the photo page is enough. Could you send it by [date]? If your passport has expired or is being renewed, just tell me.

Thank you,
[Your name]
```

## Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.

- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a US passport, an unreadable or blurry scan, a copy where one of these is missing or cut off: the holder’s name, the expiration date or an expired document. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.

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