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Passport prices increase AGAIN – how much will you pay now?

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Passport prices jumped how many times in 7 months?

The answer is three. And the amount they've increased? A tidy $73.

Last month, I urged you to get your passport application in by June 30 so you could avoid paying the new increased price.

What I didn't realise back then, was that the cost of a 10-year Australian adult passport application was actually increasing multiple times, thanks to an official price hike and the joy of indexation:

  • December, 2023: the price was $325.
  • January 1, 2024: rose to $346, as it was indexed to consumer price index (CPI).
  • July 1, 2024: a scheduled price rise saw the cost increase again to $373.75.
  • On the same date: Indexation was also applied and the price jumped to $398.

That's equivalent to a whopping 22.5% hike in just 7 months.

Aka… Decidedly more than inflation.

Why are passport prices increasing so much?

Two reasons: an intentional increase, and indexation.

The non-CPI increase will "support priority initiatives within the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio, including the government's efforts to modernise Australia's passport systems and services", according to a spokesperson statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

As for the price increases on January 1 and July 1, they were due to indexation to CPI.

Indexation of government fees and charges happens quite widely. In fact, both federal and state governments apply indexation either 6-monthly or annually, on things like HECS debts, speeding fines and ATO general interest charges (GIC). When we're not in a cost of living crisis, those increases are usually around 1-2%, so they're not as noticeable.

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What can you do about it now?

So you've got an out-of-date or nearly-expired passport, and you're facing a $400 fee to get a new one? Sans discovering a time machine, there's no way to avoid these sky-high passport prices.

But – you can do yourself a massive solid, by applying for a passport well in advance of when you'll need it.

Because along with applications costs soaring, the cost of fast-tracking your application with priority 2-day processing has jumped in price too, by 22.5%.

It was $237 in December last year, and it's now $290.

You can also request your passport in 5 business days for a cheeky $100 extra. Evidently, the government is counting on Aussie's leaving it the last minute, as they announced in the May 2024 Budget that they expect to generate an additional $27.4 million revenue over the next five years from this fee alone!

Do yourself a favour: apply for your passport at least 6 weeks before you travel, so you don't have to give the government a single cent more than you need to.

While you're preparing for your next trip, check out these cheap travel insurance deals, and perhaps consider the merits of a credit card that charges no foreign transaction fees.

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