Australian passport

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New Australian ePassport

Australian passports are issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, both in Australia and overseas. Australian passports are issued only to citizens of Australia.

[edit] History

The 'X' series passport issued in 1917 is one of the earliest passports. It was during World War I that monitoring and identifying those crossing international borders became critical to the security of Australia and its allies;
The War Precautions Act 1914– 1915 required that all persons over 16 years of age, on leaving the Commonwealth, possess a passport;
In 1949 two types of passport were issued:
1. B Series passports were issued (within Australia only) to British subjects who were not Australian citizens.
2. C Series passports were issued only to Australian citizens.
The words Australian Passport replaced British Passport on the cover of the Australian passport in 1969.
Before 1983, a married woman's passport application had to be authorised by her husband;
In 1984, Australian passports included machine readable lines and were the first to have a laminate built into the document;
In 1986, the introduction of Single Identity passports meant children could no longer be included on their parent's passport;
Until 1988, a woman could apply for and receive a passport in her married name, before she was actually married.
The 'L' series passport personal data pages initially included a photograph and a cut out piece of paper with the holders signature under a sheet of adhesive laminate
From approximately 1998, the personal data page for 'L' series passports was colour laser printed and under a sheet of adhesive laminate
The 'M' series passport was issued from 27 November 2003, which included enhanced security features. The personal data page of these passports is printed by ink-jet onto the adhesive surface of the security laminate, the laminate itself containing a holographic design.
Since October 2005, the 'M' series is issued as a biometric or e-passport. An electronic passport logo is printed under the passport number on the personal data page.

[edit] Types of passports

Standard Passport (Blue Cover) - Issued for ordinary travel, such as vacations and business trips, it has 32 visa pages with 10 years validity for Adults and 5 years validity for Children's passports
- Frequent Traveller Passport - These are issued to frequent travellers, such as business people (64 pages). These cost slightly more than a standard passport.
- Senior's Passport - Issued for Australian citizens aged 75 years and over for half the cost of a standard passport, it has 32 visa pages with 5 years validity.
- Senior's Frequent Traveller Passport - Issued for Australian citizens aged 75 years and over for half the cost of a Frequent Traveller Passport, it has 64 visa pages
Diplomatic Passport (Red Cover) - Issued to Australian diplomats, top ranking government officials and diplomatic couriers. (32 pages)
Official Passport (Gray-asparagus Cover) - Issued to individuals representing the Australian government on official business. (32 pages)

[edit] Physical appearance

Australian passports are deep navy blue, with the Australian coat of arms emblazoned in the centre of the front cover. The word "PASSPORT" is inscribed below the coat of arms, with the standard biometric symbol at the bottom. The standard passport contains 32 pages, but it can be issued in a 64 page format upon request for an additional fee.

[edit] Identity Information Page

Australia ePassport information page

The Australia Passport includes the following data:

Photo of Passport Holder
Type / Type (P)
Code of Issuing State / Code de l'État émetteur (AUS)
Document No.
Name / Nom
Nationality / Nationalité (AUSTRALIAN)
Date of Birth / Date de naissance
Sex / Sexe
Place of Birth / Lieu de naissance
Date of Issue / Date de délivrance
Holder Signature / Signature du titulaire
Date of Expiry / Date d'expiration
Authority / Autorité

The information page ends with the Machine Readable Zone.

[edit] Passport note

The passports contain a note from the issuing state that is addressed to the authorities of all other states, identifying the bearer as a citizen of that state and requesting that he or she be allowed to pass and be treated according to international norms. The note inside Australian passports states:

The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, being the representative in Australia of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, requests all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer, an Australian Citizen, to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need.

[edit] Languages

The passport is printed in English. French translation is found on the identity information, observations, chip centre (puce electonique) and notice pages.

[edit] Features

Many of the lines in the Australian ePassport are made up of words. In the last pages these words are those of 'Waltzing Matilda', a song sometimes called the unofficial national anthem of Australia.
The word 'COPY' is revealed by the pattern of lines when the photocopies are made of the passport.
The laminate of the identity information page contains a hologram with kangaroos.

[edit] Biometric passport

Australian ePassport chip page

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade introduced the next generation of Australian passport: the biometric 'ePassport' on 24 October 2005.

The ePassport is very similar to the previous 'M' series Australian passport, differing only in having an embedded RFID microchip in the centre page and a gold international ePassport symbol on the front cover.

The chip embedded in the centre pages stores the holder's digitised photograph, name, gender, date of birth, nationality, passport number, and the passport expiry date. This is the same information that appears on the printed information page of every passport.

Facial recognition technology is being introduced to coincide with the release of the ePassport. This technology will be used to improve identity verification and reduce identity-related fraud.

[edit] Refusal to issue passport

Under the Passports Act 1938, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship has the power to refuse a passport, on grounds such as national security or health.

[edit] Visa-free travel

[edit] Africa

Countries and Territories	Conditions of access
Botswana	90 days [1]
Burundi	visa can be issued on arrival [2]
Cape Verde	visa can be issued on arrival [3]
Comoros	visa issued upon arrival [4]
Djibouti	1-month visa can be obtain upon arrival for DJF5,000 [5]
Egypt	30-day visa issued upon arrival for US$20 [6]
Ethiopia	3-month tourist visa issued upon arrival (Addis Ababa Airport only; US$40 and two passport photos required) [7]
Gambia	90 days [8]
Kenya	3-month visa may be issued upon arrival (may cause delays - pre-arrival visa strongly recommended) [9][10]
Lesotho	14 days [11][12]
Madagascar	90-day visa issued upon arrival for MGA 140,000; visa obtained prior to arrival strongly recommended [13]
Malawi	90 days [14]
Mauritius	6 months in a year (tourist), 90 days in a year (business) [15][16]
Mayotte	90 days [17]
Morocco	3 months [18]
Mozambique	30-day visa issued upon arrival for US$25 [19][20]
Namibia	3 months [21]
Niger	1-month visa can be obtain upon arrival [22]
Réunion	90 days [23]
Saint Helena	90 days
Seychelles	1 month [24]
South Africa	90 days [25]
Swaziland	60 days [26]
Tanzania	visa issued upon arrival for USD 50 [27][28]
Togo	7-day visa can be obtain upon arrival for XOF10,000~35,000 [29]
Tunisia	3 months visa issued upon arrival for TND 3 [30]
Uganda	30-day visa can be obtained upon arrival for USD 50 [31][32]
Zambia	visa issued upon arrival (single entry visa fee USD 25) [33][34]
Zimbabwe	3-month holiday/1-month business visa issued upon arrival for USD 30 ~ 55 [35]

[edit] Americas

Countries and Territories	Conditions of access
Anguilla	3 months [36][37]
Antigua and Barbuda	1 month [38][39]
Argentina	90 days [40]
Aruba	3 months [41]
Bahamas	visa-free access [42]
Barbados	6 months [43][44]
Belize	1 month [45]
Bermuda	6 months [46][47]
Bolivia	30 days [48]
British Virgin Islands	30 days [49]
Canada	6 months [50][51]
Cayman Islands	30 days [52]
Chile	90 day Tourist Card upon arrival; fee USD 61; see CBR Embassy
Colombia	90 days; see LON Embassy, Timatic
Costa Rica	90 days [53]
Dominica	21 days [54]
Dominican Republic	30-day tourist card issued on arrival USD 10- [55]
Ecuador	90 days [56][57]
El Salvador	90 days, $10 tourist card required [58]
Falkland Islands	30 days [59]
French Guiana	90 days [60]
Greenland	3 months [61]
Grenada	3 months [62][63]
Guadeloupe	90 days [64]
Guatemala	90 days [65]
Guyana	90 days [66]
Haiti	3 months [67][68]
Honduras	3 months [69]
Jamaica	visa-free access [70][71]
Martinique	90 days [72]
Mexico	180 days tourist/30 days business [73][74]
Montserrat	3 months [75]
Netherlands Antilles	14 days [76]
Nicaragua	90 days [77]
Panama	30-day Tourist card issued upon arrival USD5- [78][79]
Peru	90 days [80]
Puerto Rico	90 days [81][82]
Saint Barthélemy	90 days [83]
Saint Kitts and Nevis	3 months [84][85]
Saint Martin	90 days [86]
Saint Pierre and Miquelon	90 days [87]
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1 month [88]
Trinidad and Tobago	visa waiver MAY be issued upon arrival for a fee of 400 TTD [89]
Turks and Caicos Islands	30 days [90]
United States of America	90 days [91]
Uruguay	3 months [92]
U.S. Virgin Islands	90 days [93]
Venezuela	3 months [94]

[edit] Asia

Countries and Territories	Conditions of access
[edit] ASEAN
Brunei Darussalam	30-day visa issued on arrival to Brunei International Airport for USD 30 [95]
Cambodia	30-day visa issued upon arrival for USD 20/USD 25 [96]
Indonesia	30-day visa issued upon arrival for USD 25 [97]
Laos	15-day visa issued upon arrival for USD 30 [98]
Malaysia	3 months [99]
Philippines	21 days [100]
Singapore	90 days
Thailand	30 days if entering via airport customs control. Land border visas are restricted to 15 days [101]
[edit] Non-ASEAN
Bahrain	14-day visa issued upon arrival for BHD5 [102][103]
Bangladesh	90-day visa issued upon arrival for USD50- [104]
People's Republic of China	48-hour transit (Shanghai only) [105]
Republic of China (Taiwan)	30 days [106]
Hong Kong	90 days [107]
Iraq	visa issued upon arrival (free of charge [108]
Israel	3 months [109]
Japan	3 months [110]
Jordan	visa issued upon arrival for JOD10 [111][112]
South Korea	90 days [113]
Kuwait	3-month visa issued upon arrival for KWD5 [114][]
Kyrgyzstan	1-month visa issued upon arrival (fee USD 35 ~ USD 70) [115]
Lebanon	1-month visa issued upon arrival(free of charge) [116][117]
Macau	30 days [118]
Maldives	30 day visa issued upon arrival free of charge [119]
Nepal	60-day visa issued upon arrival for US$30 [120]
Oman	visa issued upon arrival : 1 month (OMR 6), 1 year multiple entries stay up to 3-week per visit (OMR 10) [121]
Qatar	30-day visa issued upon arrival for QAR100.- [122]
Sri Lanka	30 days [123]
Syria	visa issued upon arrival [124]
Tajikistan	visa issued upon arrival [125]
Timor-Leste	30-day visa issued upon arrival for USD 30 [126]
United Arab Emirates	60 days [127]
Yemen	1-month visa issued upon arrival for YER10,500 [128]

[edit] Europe

Countries and Territories	Conditions of access
[edit] European Union (EU)	also see Schengen Agreement
Austria	3 months in a half year [129][130]
Belgium	3 months in a half year [131][132]
Bulgaria	3 months in a half year [133][134]
Cyprus	3 months in a half year [135][136]
Czech Republic	3 months in a half year [137][138]
Denmark	3 months in a half year [139][140]
Estonia	3 months in a half year [141][142]
Finland	3 months in a half year [143][144]
France	3 months in a half year [145][146]
Germany	3 months in a half year [147][148]
Gibraltar	visa-free access [149]
Greece	3 months in a half year [150][151]
Hungary	3 months in a half year [152][153]
Republic of Ireland	3 months in a half year [154][155]
Italy	3 months in a half year [156][157]
Latvia	3 months in a half year [158][159]
Lithuania	3 months in a half year [160][161]
Luxembourg	3 months in a half year [162][163]
Malta	3 months in a half year [164][165]
Netherlands	3 months in a half year [166][167]
Poland	3 months in a half year [168][169]
Portugal	3 months in a half year [170][171]
Romania	3 months in a half year [172][173]
Slovakia	3 months in a half year [174][175]
Slovenia	3 months in a half year [176][177]
Spain	3 months in a half year [178][179]
Sweden	3 months in a half year [180][181]
United Kingdom	6 months [182]
[edit] Non-EU
Andorra	3 months in a half year (same as France and Spain)
Macedonia	90 days [183]
Monaco	90 days [184]
Montenegro	90 days [185]
Norway	3 months in half a year [186]
San Marino	90 days [187]
Serbia	90 days [188]
Switzerland	3 months in half a year [189]
Turkey	3-month visa issued upon arrival for EUR 15 [190]
Vatican City	90 days [191]

[edit] Oceania

Countries and Territories	Conditions of access
American Samoa	30 days [192]
Cook Islands	31 days [193]
Fiji	6 months [194]
Guam	15 days [195]
Kiribati	28 days [196]
Federated States of Micronesia	30 days[197]
Nauru	30-day visa issued on arrival (free of charge [198]
New Caledonia	90 days [199]
New Zealand	Unrestricted residence and employment rights under Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement [200]
Niue	30 days [201]
Norfolk Island	visa not required [202]
Northern Mariana Islands	30 days [203]
Palau	30-day visa issued upon arrival (free of charge) [204][205]
Papua New Guinea	60-day visa issued upon arrival for PGK100 (tourist), PGK500 (business) [206]
French Polynesia	90 days [207]
Samoa	60 days, free visitor permit issued upon arrival [208]
Solomon Islands	3 months [209]
Tokelau	free cruising permit can be obtain in Apia, Samoa [210]
Tonga	31-day visa issued upon arrival (free of charge) [211]
Tuvalu	1-month visa issued upon arrival free of charge [212]
Vanuatu	30 days [213][214]
Wallis and Futuna	90 days [215]