Passport fees to increase from 25 May

As part of a regular review by the Department of Internal Affairs, the fees for New Zealand passports will increase slightly due to the decrease in demand caused by COVID-19.

Internal Affairs Minister Jan Tinetti says that the Government has made every effort to keep the increase to a minimum this year to reduce the impact on New Zealanders who require a new passport.

“The passport system is designed to be entirely funded by passport fees, and while passport income has taken a significant hit, the fixed costs to run the service remain consistent so we have been advised a small increase is required,” Jan Tinetti said.

From 25 May 2022 the price of an adult passport will increase from $191 to $199, and the price of a child passport has increased from $111 to $115 (GST Inclusive). These costs remain in line with Australia, Canada and the United States.

New Zealand Passports are only required to be renewed every 10 years for adults and 5 for children.

“The Department’s regular review of the passport fee structure presented a range of options that would help address COVID cost pressures over the last two years, and ensure the passport service remains on the path to full cost recovery.”

“Passport applications have dropped from over 730,000 in 2018/19 to just over 150,000 in 2020/21 which has meant that current fees are not covering full costs,” Jan Tinetti said.

“Cabinet has decided to go with the smallest incremental increases between 2022 and 2024 that was presented to it, in order to avoid a more significant one off increase.”

“We appreciate any increase to costs at this time will pose a challenge to some families, but this outcome is the best balance between keeping the increase to a minimum and returning the passport service to full cost recovery.”

The COVID-19 global pandemic caused a significant and unexpected reduction in demand. Additionally, the change in validity period (from 5 years to 10 years), means the costs need to be recovered from a smaller number of passports issued. Without this change costs will exceed revenue,” Jan Tinetti said.