NATO Status of Forces Agreement - identification of status
An explanation of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) and identification of status.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) is the treaty that sets out the terms under which the armed forces of a NATO Member State are allowed to operate and live through arrangement within another NATO Member State.
While assigned to a NATO Member State, UK Ministry of Defence personnel are through arrangement entitled to the rights and privileges and subject to the obligations of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement, to which all NATO Member States are parties.
In accordance with Article 5.4.7 of EC C(2022) 7591 (Practical Handbook for Border Guards), the European Commission recognises in law those “documents issued pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article III of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement between the Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty regarding the Status of their forces”.
Germany
The issue of a NATO Status of Forces Agreement Identification Card to a member of the ‘force’, the ‘civilian component’ or their ‘dependents’ is pursuant to Article III of the NATO SOFA and Article 5 of the Supplementary Agreement to the NATO SOFA Germany, together with the inclusion of a NATO Status of Forces Agreement Status Certificate (sometimes referred to as a “Status Stamp”) within the passport of the bearer.
An example of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement Identification Card is shown below.
The bearer of these documents:
- is a member of the Force, the Civilian Component or a Dependant of the NATO Sending State (GBR) as defined by Article I of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement
- should be afforded the privileges accorded by Article III of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement in respect of passport and visa regulation and immigration inspection on entering or leaving a NATO Member State, and on the registration and control of Aliens
- pursuant to the NATO Status of Forces Agreement, and by virtue of their living in the NATO Member State, the bearer of these documents is not subject to the restrictions that may be placed on other Third Country Nationals in respect of the time period of their stay within the European Union, and should be treated accordingly
Both the ID card above and the NATO SOFA certificate held in passport are approved through the appropriate federal department in Berlin.
The use of the card outside of Germany is without formal endorsement from any other nation state but is proven useful evidence in supporting purpose of entering and exiting the EU.
UK Defence personnel serving in the territory of a receiving state under the NATO SOFA should seek further guidance from their supporting National Support Element (NSE).
Lost and found identification cards
If you have lost an identification card, please contact your issuing authority.
If you have found an identification card, please hand it in at your nearest police station or email [email protected].
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Updates to this page
Published 10 March 2021Last updated 11 November 2024 + show all updates
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'Germany’ section updated.
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Added: German and French translations.
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Added: advice to contact your National Support Element for further guidance.
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Updated page contents and add image of an exemplar NATO Status of Forces Agreement identity card.
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Updated all page content to reflect most recent update.
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Updated all page content and added image of an exemplar NATO Identity Card.
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First published.