You're supposed to use the discrepancy checker to note both the rule that he needs a passport, and the emptiness of the counter in front of you...it's not obvious that the counter is clickable...I think the author tried to make the instructions more explicit in the daily briefing but I found it by accident

Thanks for clearing that up. I was clicking everything for a couple of minutes at least.

Ah okay awesome, thanks.

Well, I think that qualifies as a valid response when you're playing as a dystopian bureaucrat :)