Examine the passport number. Make sure the passport number contains only numbers if it is an American document. American passport numbers only possess digits. If letters are present in the nine digits, red flag it as a possible forgery.
Notice the order of information in each line. Date of birth, date of issue and date of expiration information are always listed in the following order: day, month and year. For example, an issue date may read: "23 November 2010." Disordered information is an indication the document is a fake.
Check out the Machine Readable Zone (MRZ) line at the bottom of the passport. Look for the passport holder's country of origin designation (abbreviation) and birthday date in the center of the line. Find the "USA" abbreviated demarcation, followed by the birth date in numerical code: "231110," for instance. Any alternate letters or digits in this part of the MRZ line is indicative of a passport forgery.
