Australian Passport Pages

[hyperdimension]

I'm running out of space in my Australian passport, so I've been wondering which pages can still be used for future visa stickers and stamps, and at what stage I should actually go and get a new passport.

I'd like to use my current passport to the maximum possible before invalidating it by getting a new one, so as not to waste pages that could have been used.

Maybe some of you are knowledgeable about the Australian passport so could be of help.

Here is an ordered list of pages in my Australian passport:

Front blue outside cover

photo page

Australian emblem & "Governor-General" full page text

"Observations" text, 1/3 of page (only on left side)

blank page

"visas" blank pages 2 to 32 (numbered)

blank page

"Important" full text & bearer's details

"Notice" full page text

Back blue outside cover

Currently the pages that have not been used in my passport and look like they could be are:

"Observations" page (2/3 of page available)

blank page before page 2 (not numbered)

"visas" blank page 30

"visas" blank page 32

blank page after page 32 (not numbered)

So my questions are:

Can the "Observations" page be used? The text was printed sideways on the left as if to allow for the rest of the page to be available for use.

Can the unnumbered blank pages before page 2 and after page 32 be used? They look almost like the numbered pages, with a few exceptions: the page number is not printed at the bottom nor in the middle; the text "VISAS" is not printed at the bottom center; the circular logo near the top is not printed.

Page 4 had a stapled piece of paper from 2005 when I bought a camera in Japan: "Record of Purchase of Consumption Tax-Exempt for Export". It was taking up an entire page, so I took it out. My concern though is that there were two small red stamps that each overlapped both the paper and passport page, so after taking out the paper, two small red half stamps remain on the right side. Would this be a problem, considering that we are not meant to tamper with a passport? I could staple the paper back in if it was wrong to remove it.

Page 9 has an unused visa sticker for Japan that expired on 28 November 2007. Would it be wrong for me to remove it?

If none of these are possible then I'd only have 2 full pages left (30 and 32), which may be just enough for only 1 more visa run!

[ubonjoe]

There was a recent report for one of the consulates not using any page unless it says visas.

Don't try peeling the sticker off it won't work as reported by a member.

Are you going for a visa or doing a border run for a re-entry?

Do you you have a half page somewhere that they be can used for entry and departure stamps? If yes then you would have enough for a visa run.

You have more than enough for a border run.

[McLovin]

I'm running out of space in my Australian passport, so I've been wondering which pages can still be used for future visa stickers and stamps, and at what stage I should actually go and get a new passport.

!

This post is joke right??

An in depth post of the entire pages of someone passport.. Common sense dude, look at your passport. If it looks full or is getting full, get a new one. SIMPLE AS THAT

[hyperdimension]

This post is joke right??

An in depth post of the entire pages of someone passport.. Common sense dude, look at your passport. If it looks full or is getting full, get a new one. SIMPLE AS THAT

No, it is not a joke. If I could do all the things I asked about I'd have 6 and 2/3 pages that could still be used. That is quite ample for at least a couple of visa runs to Laos.

Whereas if I couldn't, then I'd only have 2 pages, which would just be enough for 1 Laos visa, and one Thai Tourist visa, both of which take up a full page. Some of the other pages of my passport have some spaces for entry and exit stamps, so they'd do for those.

So yes, my passport is getting full, but I'd like to use it to the maximum instead of leaving almost 7 pages (almost 20%) that could have been used. I'm presuming that once I get a new passport, the old one would be invalidated and so the blank pages in it cannot be used for visas or stamps.

Edited February 17, 2009 by hyperdimension

[tropo]

A tampered passport could put you under scrutiny by Thai or Australian authorities.

The one visa sticker which was never used maybe possible to remove without leaving any signs of tampering if you use steam...like people do to remove postage stamps from envelopes...but only if there are no ink stamps overlapping the border of it. I'd put the other Japanese page with the overlapping stamps back if I was you.

Edited February 17, 2009 by tropo

[david96]

Get a new passport it will have the latest security features. Apply at the Consular section of the Australian Embassy if you are not planning to return to Australia soon. Do not tamper with your passport. Your passport is the property of the Australian Government.

[hyperdimension]

I'd put the other Japanese page with the overlapping stamps back if I was you.

I don't see any practical reason for it because it served its purpose (declaring tax-exempt items) when I departed Japan in 2005. It's a waste of an entire page. I've stapled the paper back in for the time being, but I'm thinking of removing it and carrying the paper with the passport (but physically unattached), so that I can present it if questioned about the page.

I'm thinking of how I can prevent an officer from stamping the blank pages, because I'd need to save them for full-page stickers (Laos visa and Thai Tourist visa).

Throughout my passport I've counted 11 other possible places that can fit a stamp, so the officers should not need to stamp any of the fresh blank pages.

Would it be ok if I staple a piece of paper to the blank pages on which I have written "no stamp on this page please... reserved for visa sticker"?

There was a recent report for one of the consulates not using any page unless it says visas.

Entry, exit and extension stamps are not visas. So could those pages without the "visas" text be used for stamps?

I'm being quite logical here, but the problem is that systems/policies/rules aren't always logical.

[ubonjoe]

If all you took out was a peice of paper I would not worry about it. Just don't take off a sticker.

It might work to staple a note on the blank visa pages.

Whether they will use the non visa pages would be up to the immigration officer who is doing the stamping.

I think after your next visa run you are going to need a new passport. When you get it you should ask for a 64 page passport. It costs more but if it saves getting a new passport early it would be worth.

[PhootThaiMaiDai]

Unsure, but I'd be surprised if Oz didn't do what the US does. Head over to your consulate and ask for additional visa pages. If your passport is in good shape, it's a relatively painless process. I've gone twice (both times in Thai) and more than doubled the number of visa pages available. I'd carry a brick with my passport if it meant not having to go through the renewal process again...

Curious if Oz (and the UK) are the same. It seems like an obvious accommodation for Western thinking countries...

[Goinghomesoon]

No additional pages for Australian passports. As far as the unused pages, the observation page is just that, a page for a special label, for example if you are a dignitary or hold some special rank. It can't be used for visa stamps.

[Badbanker]

Sadly no they will not give you additional page and the once every 10 year effort to renew my Australian passport is such that I dread it for a full 10 years!

Aside from the draconian, bombastic and condecending security staff and consular staff, the requirements for re-issuance of an Australian passport are unheard of. Be prepared for a major head ache when you renew your visa as last time after I showed the 50 year old obviously genuine birth certificate and extract from a birth registry office and an original certificate of Australian nationality, they wanted to see two official documents aside from my Thai drivers licenses, with my signature on them. This was in addition to the normally required signature from a Doctor stating he has known me for 20 years!

It had become a total farse. Not surprisingly, at the time I was applying there were 2 other people who were also local longterm residents who also said they only ever go to the Australian Embassy for the requisite passport extension once every 10 years and like me dread the effort.

Why is it I can call the US Embassy, The British Embassy or The Netherlands Embassy and I am sure many others and I get a person. At the Australian Embassy I get a recorded message and a reply after 48 hours!

Be prepared for a major head ache when you renew your visa!

BB

Edited February 22, 2009 by Badbanker

[Goinghomesoon]

Strange, I just renewed mine and it was a one-page form, 2 photos and the fee.

[aussiechick]

The only time I had a problem renewing my passport was just after 9/11. Needed more proof that I was me! Needed something else with a photograph and signature and another document - with your address and with your signature. All the way back to Pattaya and then back up again. Photos were different then too. They took them at the Embassy and my photo reflects how p**sed of I was!! Thank god I now have another passport.

Last time in and out no bother.

[KamnanT]

Strange, I just renewed mine and it was a one-page form, 2 photos and the fee.

Same here. Renewed my Australian passport in January 2008 and it was a single page form completed on the Internet, passport photos and (of course) money. Expensive, but all handled pretty efficiently. Renewal didn't even require a guarantor.