If you are abroad and find yourself in an emergency situation (for example, if you are travelling as a tourist, need to return home, and your passport has been lost or stolen) and you do not have the time or possibility to obtain a new passport, Italian diplomatic and consular offices — located both within Europe and in non-European countries — can issue a provisional travel document (also known as an E.T.D. – Emergency Travel Document).
As of Tuesday, 9 December 2025, the new emergency travel document (EU Emergency Travel Document), introduced by Directive 2019/997 and by the Decree of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of 26 July 2024, has come into effect.
The EU ETD is an emergency document that can be issued to Italian nationals or to citizens of other EU countries not represented locally. It is valid for one single journey only, either to the Member State of citizenship, to the traveller’s country of permanent residence, or — in exceptional cases — to another destination. It may be issued to any EU citizen, provided that the Member State of citizenship authorizes it.
To obtain the EU ETD, you must go to the Consulate and present the appropriate form together with the following documents:
a) a statement declaring the theft or loss of the passport or other travel document;
b) the police report filed with the local authorities regarding the theft, loss, or destruction of the passport or other travel document;
c) a passport photo (complying with the standards established in ICAO Document 9303 on machine-readable travel documents);
d) your travel ticket.
Please note that on the days before public holidays and on public holidays, this assistance may not be available due to office closures and may be postponed — except in proven emergencies — to the next working day.
Always remember to keep a photocopy of your most important documents (passport, identity card, credit card) in a place separate from the originals, in order to make assistance procedures easier in case of theft or loss.
The ETD may also be issued to citizens of other EU Member States, after consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the applicant’s country of citizenship or with the office designated by that Member State to verify the applicant’s identity and nationality.