The Australian passport ripoff

[Bulldozer Dawn]

I recently went with my TG to make an application to renew her passport. Ten minute job 1,000THB fee and 40THB for it to be sent to our home via EMS. It arrived in 4 days. Perfect. And there is 60 or more pages in the passport.

I am faced with applying for a new Aussie passport.

To get the roughly the same amount of pages as my TGs passport the costs are $376 plus $100 application fee. On todays conversion rate that is 12,312THB.

Can someone please explain to me, like I was a four year old child, or a golden retriever, why an Australian passport is 12 times more expensive than a Thai one.

My TGs passport seems to work just as good as mine when we travel abroad.

Prices for a new Aussie passport are here:

https://www.passports.gov.au/web/queries/fees.aspx

Edited August 4, 2015 by Bulldozer Dawn

[Time Traveller]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Edited August 4, 2015 by Time Traveller

[malt25]

It's a bit like Stonehenge. No one knows the reason, it just is.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

[rhodie]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

You may want to compare the average Thai wage to the average Aussie wage. That may just give you a clue.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

You may want to compare the average Thai wage to the average Aussie wage. That may just give you a clue.

The sales price for a government product should be based on what it costs to produce. Not how much the purchaser can pay.

[giddyup]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

Right on. As if there is a choice.

[rhodie]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

You may want to compare the average Thai wage to the average Aussie wage. That may just give you a clue.

The sales price for a government product should be based on what it costs to produce. Not how much the purchaser can pay.

Good point. They have to pay a salary to the person that produces it. So back to my first point.

[mickjn]

If the price of the Australian Passport was $5000 for 10 years I would pay it.As far as I am concerned they are far to cheap

[giddyup]

If the price of the Australian Passport was $5000 for 10 years I would pay it.As far as I am concerned they are far to cheap

If that's the price the Aussie government decided to charge, you would have to pay it, unless you stayed at home you'd have no choice.

[evadgib]

...are you sure you're not a Pom?

[opalred]

i think they say at 75yrs half prise ?

[ripstanley]

You can get a 35 page passport for $250.00 plus $100.00 processing fee. This is valid for 10 years.

The senior passport is only for 5 years.

The followiing is from their website

Fees to be paid in THB cash at the passport interview

Effective 1 July 2015, additional application fees for an Australian passport lodged overseas will be implemented. These fees are as follows:

Overseas surcharge
Adult and senior passports - $100.00
Child passport - $50.00

Therefore, the cost of an adult passport will is as follows:

From 1 January 2015 - 30 June 2015:

AUD 376 (10 years/67 pages)
AUD 250 (10 YEARS/35 pages)

From 1 July 2015:

AUD 476 (10 years/67 pages)
AUD 350 (10 years/35 pages)

Fees are payable in Thai Baht cash at the time of lodgement of the passport application. The fee is linked to the AUD/THB exchange rate and is re-aligned each month. Please check the current Thai baht fee with the Consular Services Section.

Please contact us for information on additional fees payable if your passport has been lost or stolen.

Passports for Seniors 75 years of age and older

Applicants aged 75 years and older may request a senior’s passport. A senior’s passport is valid for 5 years and the fee is $125 for a 35 page passport and $188 for a 67 page passport. Effective 1 July 2015, these fees will be $225 for a 35 page passport and 288 for a 67 page passport.

Edit

Link added

http://thailand.embassy.gov.au/bkok/Consular_P2.html

Edited August 4, 2015 by ripstanley

[kaorop]

Gotta pay for all those "in the course of duty" helicopter runs.

[opalred]

why is a senior 75 in there eyes and other govt dept say 55yrs

another ripoff to pay the expenses food and high life of bludging embassy staff

[malcoml]

The Australian passport is an electronic passport whereas the Thai passport is not.

The fact Australians have a electronic passport means they have ease of travel to many countries that Thai people don't. Thai passports are easily copied and as such worthless.

I'm happy to pay the extra for the ease of travel some people are not.

[opalred]

i had to get a new passport in malaysia a few years ago when they brought the page of electronic shit in wasted a page

in passport as now that passport nere finished

the only time that ripoff page worked was when went back to oz quick to get through airport than others

another thing when i got caught in rain storm the photo got wet and faded now want me to pay for new passport

before never happened and had many passports

ripoff mob second class passport just a money making scam

[Tomtomtom69]

You can get a 35 page passport for $250.00 plus $100.00 processing fee. This is valid for 10 years.

The senior passport is only for 5 years.

The followiing is from their website

Fees to be paid in THB cash at the passport interview

Effective 1 July 2015, additional application fees for an Australian passport lodged overseas will be implemented. These fees are as follows:

Overseas surcharge

Adult and senior passports - $100.00

Child passport - $50.00

Therefore, the cost of an adult passport will is as follows:

From 1 January 2015 - 30 June 2015:

AUD 376 (10 years/67 pages)

AUD 250 (10 YEARS/35 pages)

From 1 July 2015:

AUD 476 (10 years/67 pages)

AUD 350 (10 years/35 pages)

Fees are payable in Thai Baht cash at the time of lodgement of the passport application. The fee is linked to the AUD/THB exchange rate and is re-aligned each month. Please check the current Thai baht fee with the Consular Services Section.

Please contact us for information on additional fees payable if your passport has been lost or stolen.

Passports for Seniors 75 years of age and older

Applicants aged 75 years and older may request a senior’s passport. A senior’s passport is valid for 5 years and the fee is $125 for a 35 page passport and $188 for a 67 page passport. Effective 1 July 2015, these fees will be $225 for a 35 page passport and 288 for a 67 page passport.

Edit

Link added

http://thailand.embassy.gov.au/bkok/Consular_P2.html

OMG is the Australian government out of it's mind? Aussie passports were already close to being the most expensive in the world, now they are likely almost certainly by far the most expensive in the world, even with the recent drop in the value of the AUD. What is this extra $100 charge for applying overseas? What a joke...

When I applied for my 69 page Aussie passport (maybe it's 67 pages because the first couple of pages can't be used, but it's numbered until page 69) in HCMC, Vietnam in April 2012 I paid the Dong equivalent of A$352 and that was already crazy expensive. Why does the Aussie government think it needs to increase prices every year?

Other governments don't seem to be doing the same...

As a point of comparison, Swiss passports, which only have 40 pages cost CHF 148 I think INCLUDING the Swiss national ID card if applied for at the same time. The Swiss passport without the ID card costs CHF 140. At current exchange rates, that is 205 vs 194 AUD respectively. While I haven't checked whether the prices have gone up recently or how often they rise, I am quite sure NOT every year. For an otherwise expensive country, Swiss passports are FAR cheaper than Aussie ones.

I also hear US and British passports are much cheaper than Aussie ones.

Aussies are getting hosed. It's time to put a stop to this nonsense, but except for a few complaining ones, most seem to be oblivious to the amount they (we) are being ripped off.

[Tomtomtom69]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

You may want to compare the average Thai wage to the average Aussie wage. That may just give you a clue.

Yet Swiss people, who earn more than Aussies pay far less for their passports. CHF 140 or AUD 194 for a 40-page passport compared to AUD 350 for the closest Aussie equivalent, which is a 35-page passport.

As good as an Aussie passport may be, no way it's worth 350/476 AUD. Even if Aussies earn more than Thais, it doesn't mean we should get ripped off to that extent. Americans and Brits earn pretty much the same salaries as Aussies and also pay far less for their passports, less than the Swiss I believe. Not to mention Germans.

[patrick1968]

hi ,,sorry mate just like to asked you where did you go to renew your Aus/passport ,,,,what documents you need ,,thanks mate ,,,sorry just is my first time ,,,,ta mate ,,,

[samran]

So you are complaining about a document which for A$47 per year lets you travel to most places in the world visa free?

Compare that to the Thai passport and the cost of a visa for a majority of the countries in the world, not to metion the paperwork and time to apply, and you'll find the Aussie passport works out a lot more cheaply.

And yes, I have both.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

You can get a 35 page passport for $250.00 plus $100.00 processing fee. This is valid for 10 years.

Yes but the Thai passport has 60 plus pages and costs less than $40 Australian dollars including the processing fee and EMS express registered post anywhere in Thailand.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

The Australian passport is an electronic passport whereas the Thai passport is not.

The fact Australians have a electronic passport means they have ease of travel to many countries that Thai people don't. Thai passports are easily copied and as such worthless.

I'm happy to pay the extra for the ease of travel some people are not.

.Piffle...

The Thai passport works just as good passing through immigration in any country. That is, it gets stuff stamped in it.

Of course a person with an Australian passport has different opportunities for visas then the holder of a Thai passport. But I did not start this thread to discuss visas. I started it to discuss what a rip off Australian passports are.

You get no ease of travel because of your rip off priced passport. You get it because of your citizenship.

And don't carry on with the OH but the Australian passport has extra security features blah blah blah. What do I care. I am happy to buy one without those features for $40, the equivalent of what a thai pays.

Edited August 4, 2015 by Bulldozer Dawn

[Bulldozer Dawn]

hi ,,sorry mate just like to asked you where did you go to renew your Aus/passport ,,,,what documents you need ,,thanks mate ,,,sorry just is my first time ,,,,ta mate ,,,

Well that another issue isn't it. We get ripped off paying for our passport, but then we can't even get our honorary consulate in Phuket to answer a phone call. I am still trying to figure how I can renew the bloody thing.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

So you are complaining about a document which for A$47 per year lets you travel to most places in the world visa free?

Compare that to the Thai passport and the cost of a visa for a majority of the countries in the world, not to metion the paperwork and time to apply, and you'll find the Aussie passport works out a lot more cheaply.

And yes, I have both.

No your analysis does not wash. Because my current passport is less than 5 years in and it is already close to full. Thanks to the stamp happy Thai immigration with its full page and half page stamps.

A better way to view it is price per page. A standard 35 page passport applied for outside of Australia costs $350. That is $10 per page.

So next time you get (for example) a re entry permit stamp (half page) it is burning up $5 worth of realestate in your passport.

And what about the numpty in Bangkok who put the first ever stamp in my last new passport. He kindly started stamping on page 3, and in doing so burnt $25 of passport page realestate.

[Time Traveller]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

Right on. As if there is a choice.

There is a choice. Get another citizenship, or don't get a passport, or quit complaining about it.

Alas it seems Bulldozer Dawn doesn't seem to understand frugal living doesn't reconcile with international travel.

Edited August 4, 2015 by Time Traveller

[Bulldozer Dawn]

They are more expensive because people like you decide to pay it.

Actually its only 6 times more expensive, Thai passports are only valid for 5 years

Good point, I am very frugal and I like to shop around a lot looking for the best deal. Please post some links to the alternatives to buying my next Australian passport from the Australian government.

Right on. As if there is a choice.

There is a choice. Get another citizenship or don't get a passport or quit complaining about it.

So, I take it, you don't fight back when you are raped?

[shaggy851]

What he said. Relative to the affordability and the average wage, the people employed to service the passport from mail service to printing and the quality of the document. Not as easily duplicated and contains an electronic page within. I believe they are quite hard to duplicate and successful fakes have to use an original and usually only the picture is changed. Plus in the right hands is access to a first world country. Probally worth ten Thai passports. You can travel to so many different countries with an oz passport with great ease. A Thai passport gets you limited access to asean nations and a big no applying for a visa to first world countries

[ukrules]

Can someone please explain to me, like I was a four year old child, or a golden retriever, why an Australian passport is 12 times more expensive than a Thai one.

The government which owns you has decided to charge you a much higher rate.

It's as simple as that.

[Bulldozer Dawn]

What he said. Relative to the affordability and the average wage, the people employed to service the passport from mail service to printing and the quality of the document. Not as easily duplicated and contains an electronic page within. I believe they are quite hard to duplicate and successful fakes have to use an original and usually only the picture is changed. Plus in the right hands is access to a first world country. Probally worth ten Thai passports. You can travel to so many different countries with an oz passport with great ease. A Thai passport gets you limited access to asean nations and a big no applying for a visa to first world countries

Again this is not a discussion about visas. It is about why some pieces of paper sold by the Australia government are 12 time more expensive than the same pieces of paper sold by the Thai government.

Perhaps the answer is unions:

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/walkoff-threat-to-australian-passports-20111205-1ofj4.html

Edited August 4, 2015 by Bulldozer Dawn