UNITEDNATIONS NATIONSUNIES

APPLICATION FOR UNITED NATIONS FAMILY CERTIFICATE

INSTRUCTIONS
PLEASE READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE
COMPLETING THE APPLICATION FORM (form PT.39)
1. The purpose of the Family Certificate is to facilitate the official travel of family members in an area
where undue hardship could result from the absence of a United Nations identification document.
Supporting documentation of such hardship shall be submitted with each application for a
Family Certificate.

2. A Family Certificate may be issued to the official’s immediate family members, such as a dependent
spouse and/or eligible children (up to age 21) provided that:

• the official has a valid Laissez-Passer and

• the journey is being made at the expense of the organization/agency and
• the absence of such a document may cause inconvenience with regard to freedom of movement
in connection with authorized travel.

3. At any given time a dependent of the United Nations or a Specialized Agency staff member may hold
only one active Family Certificate.

4. This form is only available electronically as PDF document. It should ONLY be printed after all
information required in Part A (Staff Member) and Part B (Dependent) is completed electronically,
otherwise it will NOT be accepted. Only the current version of the PT.39 form (06-14)-E will be
accepted.

5. No manual changes may be made to the form. Especially not to field no. 6 “Appointment Expiration
Date”.

6. Attach one photograph of the dependent to the specifications provided on page two of this form. It
is essential that the submitted photograph fully complies with these guidelines.

7. Because the Family Certificate accompanies the holder’s national passport, the data of both documents
must match. A copy of the data page(s) of the dependent’s valid national passport must be provided
with every application. The Family Certificate will reflect the holder’s first, middle and last names as
they are reflected in the national passport’s Machine Readable Zone (MRZ).

8. Submit the original form (no Xerox copies) through the appropriate certifying officer.

9. The processing time of a Family Certificate application is five business days from submission of a duly
completed and certified form to the issuing offices in New York or Geneva. Applications should be
submitted no later than 16 days prior to the anticipated travel date. Additional time must be calculated
for shipment to/from New York or Geneva and for the processing of visas.

10. The issuing offices may charge departments an express fee for any applications received with less than
five business days processing time. Departments will be provided with detailed quarterly billing reports.
(Current rates are available upon request from the issuing offices).

11. It is essential that ALL (valid and expired) Family Certificates are returned to the issuing offices in New
York or Geneva for cancellation prior to separation from the Organization.

BE SURE TO PRINT PAGES 3 AND 4 OF THIS FORM DOUBLESIDED

Guide to the Issuance of UN Travel Documents

PT.39 (06-14)-E
 Photographs

1. Photographs are a vital part of the application. All photographs submitted with applications for
United Nations travel documents must have been taken within six months of the date of the
application. Failure to provide photographs that do not comply with these guidelines will result in
processing delays. The acceptance of photographs is always at the discretion of the document issuing
office.

2. Certifying officers must ensure that the photographs are recent, of the applicant and meet the
ICAO standards (as per these guidelines) before the application is forwarded for processing.
Photographs must be:
• In colour
• Printed on photo quality paper
• 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm) in size
• Taken within the last 6 months to reflect applicant’s current appearance
• Taken in front of a plain white background (no shadows may be visible)
• Taken in full-face view directly facing the camera
• With a neutral facial expression and both eyes open (teeth should not be visible as this
will affect the biometric scanning and recognition of the photograph)
Subjects must not:
• Wear hats and other head coverings, unless worn daily for religious purposes (the full
face must be visible and no shadows may be cast on the face)
• Wear headphones wireless hands-free devices or similar items
• Wear glasses
Photographs will be rejected if they:
• do not meet above requirements
• are colour copies
• are digitally scanned from another document
• are snapshots, low quality vending machine or mobile phone photos, full-body photographs

3. It is recommended that all passport photos are taken by professional passport photo services. When
photos are taken in private settings, it is almost impossible to achieve the required quality results,
unless multiple light sources are used to illuminate the subject. A single flash light will not suffice,
to produce sufficient light for a bright, white background and will also cast shadows of the subject.

Paper Photo Head Size Template

Well Composed Photo Composition Examples

 I certify that all the above information is correct and that the applicant is a dependent family member of an eligible
staff member.
I have read and am familiar with the “Guide to the Issuance of UN Travel Documents”

Signature of Certifying Officer DATE

Print Name and Title OGANIZATION/DEPT.

PHONE NO. E-MAIL

PHOTOGRAPH SPECIFICATIONS
Attach one QUALITY colour photograph of the applicant with the following
specifications:
- size: 2” x 2” / 5 cm x 5 cm
(if you can see the frame of this box, the photo is too small!)
- Chin to top of hair is from 1" / 2,5 cm (dotted line) to 1 3/8" / 3,5
cm (solid line) on passport photo
- Plain white (!) background
- Front view, full face, no glasses, no headgear (unless for religious purposes)
- Photo must be less than 6 months old
- Image must be printed on quality photographic paper

ANY PHOTOGRAPHS THAT DO NOT MATCH THESE

SPECIFICATIONS WILL BE REJECTED.
For additional specifications refer to the ‘Guide to the Issuance of UN Travel Documents’, available on I-Seek.

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY – DO NOT WRITE BELOW THIS LINE

Date Received Approved for Issuance Family Certificate No. Issue date Expiration date

STAPLE BELOW SHOULDER LINE

or use double sided tape to affix photograph.
 Application Rejected

 Missing supportingdocument(s):

 Staff member has an outstanding Laissez-Passer or Family Certificate, which must be submitted for
cancellation before a new document can be issued. See attached Holder History.

Laissez-Passer/Family Certificate no.: Issued on:

 Staff member's appointment expired

 Form is not signed by authorised Certifying Officer

 Photograph does not meet quality standards and/or specifications

Signature Date

Note: The required processing time of five business days will re-apply from the date of
resubmission of an initially rejected application.