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The relation of educated men with a ballpoint pen is immense. It comes with different purposes to serve. But can I sign my passport with a ballpoint pen without letting it smears? This is legit a serious question that should have a solid answer.
A ballpoint pen is never a good option for signing your passport and there have a lot of reasons behind it. The primal reason is that the ink of a ballpoint pen does not dry easily and that causes the sign to smear right away when you close the passport book instantly.
Because of this major damage, you can already face a lot of troubles. It is always better to sign the passport with a non-ballpoint pen. It does not catch any negative side. And because a non-ballpoint pen does not get effaced easily, you can save your passport from fraudulence too.
Table of Contents
Should I Sign My Passport in Pen?
A passport requires some rules and regulations to follow. One single error on the passport can cancel your visit to any abroad country. Among those rules and regulations, the fact that you need to sign it in black or blue ink is also included.
It is strongly prohibited to sign the passport with a pencil or other types of inks of different colors.
But there might be some spaces where you need to use a pencil to fill the gaps. You are allowed to use a pencil for those places. But for the signature on the passport, don’t compromise and use a non-ballpoint pen of blue or black color.
Also Read: Rollerball Pen Vs Ballpoint Pen
Can I Sign My Passport with a Ballpoint Pen?
The sharp and direct answer to this question is “No”. You cannot and you should not use a ballpoint pen to sign your passport. This way you are just attempting to damage your passport. A signature is important in any document and a passport is no joke for sure.
Only the crisp, mud-free, clean, and pigmented texture of the ink can save your signature from getting smeared. You can find these qualities only in a non-ballpoint pen. Besides, one of the negative effects of a ballpoint pen is that you can easily efface or erase it.
Your passport will be at risk if you sign it in a ballpoint pen and later on, it gets into a hand of a fraud or a cheat. Besides, a ballpoint pen does not get dried instantly. It requires some time to dry completely. If you close the passport book instantly after signing it with a ballpoint pen or hold the book at an angle, the ink tends to get smeared or run downwards.
This will destroy your passport and you will get into trouble eventually. That’s why adopt a fine non-ballpoint pen to get the sign straight and undamaged.
Is a Ballpoint Pen the Best to Sign My Passport With?
There are numerous reasons for not using a ballpoint pen to sign your passport. Signing your passport with a ballpoint pen can never be the best idea. Let’s check out the logical reasons behind it.
- Fades Away Faster
A ballpoint pen fades away soon with time. You might face an obscure image of your sign in the passport book. And later on, you have to face trouble to prove the sign true to the authority.
- Makes Trouble to Absorb
This is also a significant reason that the paper material of your passport book finds trouble absorbing the ink of a ballpoint pen. Because of the crisp components of the non-ballpoint pen, it easily penetrates the paper of the passport and sticks to it tightly.
- Dries Slowly
Because the ballpoint pen takes too much time to dry, you should avoid using it for signatures. Signing the passport with this pen heightens the possibility of smearing, bleeding, and also feathering.
- Interrupted Flow
You cannot truly rely on a ballpoint pen because of the ink flow. The stream of the ink flow is not smooth and rather problematic. Because of the indecent flow of ink, you will feel irritating and the signature will not be as perfect as your other typical signatures.
Above all, it is an order from some superior authority that you should not sign your passport with a ballpoint pen.
What Type of Pen Should I Use to Sign My Passport?
A passport is an important document and you should take its sensitivity seriously. Thus, you should insert in your head the type of pen you should use to sign it.
- It has to be a non-ballpoint pen.
- The pen must carry a sleek and right-sized tip.
- It should also carry black or blue ink only.
- Besides, there should be an uninterrupted ink flow from the pen.
- The non-ballpoint pen should also carry pigmented, crisp, and clean ink.
A lot of companies produce non-ballpoint pens worth a try. A Montblanc pen or a Micron Blister Card Ink Pen carries all the characteristics stated above and they are legit-worthy. So, you can think of the experience with those types of pens.
Here is a list of good pens to sign your passport, you can make your choice easily.
What Color Pen Do I Use to Sign a Passport?
You don’t get to choose much ink color to sign important documents. In this case, a passport is valuable and it has some requirements that you need to fill correctly. That’s why it allows you only to sign with a black-inked pen or a blue-inked pen.
Blue-inked Pen: Blue evokes a sense of royalty as well. Also, the blue color of the ink of the pen soothes eyes too. You will not find such a soothing vibe and also it is a symbol of mistakes in most cases. The blue color of the ink is acceptable and it is good ink to provide a signature on your passport.
Black-inked Pen: Black ink is universally used, and it is acceptable and available in any situation. Many legal and high official documents allow only black ink pens for writing or signing only. It also secures the document from the sense of error and mistakes. That’s why using a black ink pen for the signature on your passport is highly applicable legally.
What if I Mess Up My Signature on My Passport?
As it is men to err, you cannot escape from your mistaking if it is destined. There are several ways to fix your messed-up signature on your passport.
Firstly, if you make a slight mistake while signing on the passport, don’t get nervous and finish up your signature. The authority might not find the mistake a grim one.
Secondly, if the mistake is highlighted and it might occur problem, then strike a line on the ruined sign and sign again correctly beside the ruined one.
Thirdly, if there is no space left to sign again beside the ruined one, then you have to take a big step. Just apply for another passport to replace the previous one. This might give you some trouble and cost you extra. But you should learn to pay for your mistakes too.
Do I Sign My Passport in Blue or Black Ink?
You can sign your passport either in blue or black ink. Most people prefer black ink for signing their passports because of the availability of ink everywhere. But if you are more conscious about class, sophistication, and gentleness, then you can also sign the passport with blue ink.
Just remain between these two ink colors. Don’t think of using red, green, or other extravagant colors of ink while signing your passport. And make sure the black and blue inks come as a non-ballpoint pen.
Next Read: Fixing a gel pen that normally skips
What Other Pens Can I Sign My Passport With?
Apart from the non-ballpoint pen, you can use other pens as well to sign your passport with. Many brands provide pens that come with the quality of a non-ballpoint pen. For example, the Amazon Basics Felt Tip Marker pen is a good choice to sign your passport with.
This brand assures a seamless tip with the right flow of the ink and its instant drying formula too. Besides, the Montblanc brand also produces sleek non-ballpoint pens and they are useful for the signature job.
Likewise, Micron Blister comes with card ink pens suitable for the signing job too. The ink of these pens tends to dry faster and ease your fingers to write your signature nicely.
What Pens Can Be Used to Sign Professional Documents?
Professional Documents are as valuable as a passport. You will hardly find any difference in the rules of signing between a professional document and a passport. Some official works strongly suggest black ink for any signature and scheme.
But apart from that, blue and black are two colored pens that are applicable to sign your professional documents and passport too.
Final Thoughts
We are aware of the significance of a passport and the information you provide it with. Also, because your signature on a passport enhances its validity big time, you should learn properly with which pen you can sign on it.
Hi, I’m Andy Gary, the founder of Writers Need and a stationery enthusiast. I love to blog about anything regarding writing and have created lots of pages that I can now share with others!