Ottawa Ottawa

Estonian Passport and ID card

There are three ways to apply for a passport and/or ID card abroad:

  • In-person at the Embassy of Estonia;
  • By mail;
  • At a self-service portal.

Applying in person at the Estonian Embassy in Ottawa

You must apply for a passport and / or ID card in person at the embassy if it is not possible to submit the application through self-service or by post, or if it is the initial application of a passport and / or ID card. To apply at the embassy, a time must be booked in advance online.

Our consular hours are Mondays – Wednesdays between 13:00 – 16:00.

The application can be filled out at home and brought to the appointment, or filled in at the embassy during the appointment.

State Fee

When applying at the embassy in person, the state fee can be paid by card or Interac e-transfer. Cash and cheques are not accepted. If the state fee has been paid by Interac e-transfer, a receipt confirming the payment of the state fee must be presented.

The state fee depends on both the method of application and the place where the document is to be received. The state fee is subject to change due to the fluctuating exchange rate between the Canadian dollar and the Euro.

More information on state fees here.

Document Photo Requirements

The document photo must be sent by e-mail to the Estonian Police and Border Guard (PPA) [email protected] . The e-mail must include the first and last name of the person in the photo and their Estonian personal identification code or date of birth. It is not possible to take the document photo at the embassy. If the applicant does not use e-mail themselves, someone else (e.g. a photographer) can send the photo on his / her behalf. The PPA does not accept hard-copy photos.

The photo should be:

  • in colour
  • minimum resolution of 1300×1600 pixels
  • minimum size of 1 MB and maximum size of 5 MB
  • in the format of JPG or JPEG
  • no older than six months

More detailed requirements and instructions are provided on the PPA website.

The initial application for an Estonian Citizen’s passport and ID-card

The initial application for an Estonian Citizen’s passport and ID-card should be submitted in person to the Embassy of Estonia in Ottawa or at the premises of Honorary Consulate during the visit of the representative of the Embassy.

The following documents must be presented for an initial passport:

  • Standard application form – instructions for filling in the application form can be found here.
  • Birth certificate/ marriage certificate.
    • Original long form birth certificates issued by provincial authorities, and legalized by the Embassy of Estonia prior to the passport and ID card application.
    • Marriage Certificate is required in case your name after marriage (or subsequent divorce) is different from your maiden name stated on your birth certificate.
  • Official valid Photo ID (e.g. Canadian passport).
  • Proof of Estonian citizenship. There is a non-exhaustive list of documents that can be used to prove your right to Estonian citizenship. Most often such proof is presented in the form of:
    • Republic of Estonia ID card and travel document/passport, military certificate, school/university diploma mentioning Estonian citizenship, proof of employment at an Estonian government agency (available at Estonian National Archives).
    • Birth, marriage, death, and other vital statistics documents which can be ordered through the Embassy. For more information please read about ordering documents.
  • State fee payable in Canadian dollars. The Estonian Embassy in Ottawa accepts payments with credit card or interac e-transfer.

All supportive documents should be in Estonian, English, or Russian. An official translation is required if the supporting documents of your application are in other languages. Only notarized and officially legalised/authenticated/apostilled copies of supporting documents are accepted.

Please note that all documents issued in Canada (e.g. birth- & marriage certificates, etc.) which are meant to be used in Estonia should be authenticated by Global Affairs Canada and then legalized by the Embassy of Estonia. For more information, please read about the legalization of documents.

If you are applying for the initial passport of children under 15-years of age and one of the parent/guardian is not an Estonian citizen, consent from the other parent/guardian is required. If you are divorced and/or you have single custody right over the child, the Court Order to prove such right has to be presented. Please ensure that you also provide a signed photocopy of the other parent’s passport.

It is possible to apply for an initial passport and/ or ID-card for a child under the age of 12 years by mail. In this case, the application should be sent directly to the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board. For more information visit their website.

Picking up a passport and / or ID card in Canada

Passports can be picked up from the Embassy in Ottawa or at the Estonian honorary consulates in Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, or Vancouver.

ID cards can be picked up from the Embassy in Ottawa or at the Estonian honorary consulates in Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, or Vancouver.

The desired pick up location should be written on the application under “place of issue.” Once the documents have arrived at the embassy or honorary consulate, the applicant will be contacted by e-mail or telephone. You can find the contacts of honorary consuls here.

The passport and / or ID card of a child under the age of 15 is issued only to the child’s legal representative (parent or guardian) or a person authorized by him or her at the time of application.

Citizens of at least 15 years of age are issued a passport and / or ID card in person or at the request of an authorized representative.

Authorization to pick up a passport and / or ID card

You can authorize another person to pick up your passport and / or ID card. This can only be done if the authorization is submitted with the application in person at the embassy or at a PPA service on site in Estonia.

Upon receipt of the document, the authorized person must present a valid Estonian identity document and the applicant’s old passport and / or ID card must also be accompanied.

If a parent wishes to collect the passport and / or ID card of a child over the age of 15, the child must make an authorization to the parent on the spot together with the application.

Renewal of the passport or ID-card in person

Upon expiration of an Estonian passport, one should apply in person at the Embassy of Estonia in Ottawa or at the premises of an Honorary Consulate during the visit of the representative of the Embassy.

For a renewal passport and/or ID-card, the following documents should be submitted:

  • Standard application form.
    • Instructions for filling in the application form can be found here.
  • 1 digital colour passport photo (sent directly to Estonian Police and Border Guard via e-mail to [email protected]).
    • Instructions and requirements for the digital photo can be found here.
  • Official valid Photo-ID (current Estonian passport).
  • State fee payable in Canadian dollars. The Estonian Embassy in Ottawa accepts payments with credit card or interac e-transfer.

Applying by mail

You can also renew a passport and / or ID card by post. It is possible to apply for a passport and / or ID card renewal by mail only in the case when the person has already received one biometric passport and / or ID card containing fingerprints and less than 6 years have passed since the issuance of that passport. The application should be sent directly to Estonian Police and Border Guard Board. For more information, visit their website.

Please check your biometrics (fingerprints) validity here.

In addition to the application, a document photo must be sent by e-mail to [email protected]

If applying by post, the state fee must be paid directly to the Estonian Police and Border Guard in Euros. Their website explains how to pay the state fee and the state fee amounts.

A correctly completed application and a receipt confirming the payment of the state fee must be sent directly to Estonia by regular mail:

APPLICATION
Police and Border Guard Administration
Pärnu mnt 139
Tallinn 15060
Estonia

Before submitting the application, we recommend that you read the instructions for filling in the application form on the PPA website here.

Applying through the self-service portal

It is most convenient to order new documents through the self-service portal of the Police and Border Guard Board website. Self-service can be accessed via ID card, mobile ID or Smart-ID. You can order both a passport and an ID card.

If, when logging in to the self-service, a message is received stating that the applicant must provide fingerprints, this can be done at the PPA services and / or Estonian foreign missions. In Ottawa, fingerprints can be given at a consular appointment Monday – Wednesday between the hours of 13:00 – 16:00. Once fingerprints have been provided, you can continue to apply for a passport using self-service.

If applying through the self-service portal, the state fee must be paid directly to the Estonian Police and Border Guard in Euros. Their website explains how to pay the state fee and the state fee amounts.

 

Important Information

  • All passport and ID card applications for Estonian citizens are processed by the PPA. You can monitor the status of a document request on the PPA website.
  • New documents will reach the embassy in about 6-8 weeks. If you wish to receive the document from one of the Estonian honorary consulates in Canada, another week is added to the waiting period.
  • When abroad, you cannot apply for a passport or ID card as a matter of urgency. You can apply for a passport and ID card as a matter of urgency only with self-service or at PPA services in Estonia. Documents requested as a matter of urgency can only be received in Tallinn.
  • An alien’s passport can be applied for only at PPA services in Estonia.
  • As of 01.01.2021 , the court may revoke and, if necessary, prohibit the issuance of a passport to wanted persons and persons who have been prevented in criminal proceedings (incl. Maintenance debtors who have been prevented from leaving their place of residence in Estonia). The ID card is not sent to a foreign person for delivery, the person must go to the PPA’s service in Estonia. If the requested person or the maintenance debtor has submitted a request for a new document and the place of issue is a foreign state, the PPA proceedings shall immediately inform the person by e-mail of the court ruling applicable to the person. If it is, for example, a maintenance debtor, then after the person has paid the debts, the documents (passport and / or ID card) are sent to the place he or she wants to issue. However, the only possibility for a wanted person is to apply for a return certificate or a return permit and return to Estonia.