Renew your passport before June 30 – when prices increase, again
Passport prices are already amongst the highest in the world, and as of Monday July 1, 2024, they're increasing again.
This time 6 months ago, requesting a new 10-year booklet to access international travel set you back $325.
As of January 1, 2024, that price increased to $346 for an adult passport.
From July 1, 2024, it's going up to $373.75.
And that's without the priority processing fee.
Eligible Australian-based customers will be able to access a new expedited passport service called 'Fast Track (5-day processing)', also from 1 July 2024.
It means you'll have your passport in your hot little hands within 5 business days of a complete passport application being received by the Passport Office...
For the princely sum of an extra $100. That's not much change from $500 to get your passport in a hurry.
Just quietly, the federal government expects to make a little over $27 million over the next five years from these express fees.
Need your passport even sooner?
You're in luck – but you're also going to be broke.
If you're in super urgent need, you can have your passport process under their 'Priority (2-day processing)' service, which guarantees passport processing within 2 business days of your complete application being received.
The priority processing fee? A whopping $252.
That's on top of the $373.75 application fee, bringing your total investment to an eye-watering $626.
Moral of the story: don't leave it to the last minute. Get your application in at least 6 weeks prior to travelling and if you can, get it in before June 30 this year so you can beat the price increase.
Passports aren't the only change coming July 1: here's your all-in-one EOFY checklist to get your money sorted
