Introduction

If you're overseas and want to apply for an Australian passport for yourself and/or your child, you can download the application form online. Proof of identity and Australian citizenship will be required.

To get started, visit the Australian Passport Office for information on:

  • the documentation required
  • the application and lodgement process
  • the fees charged
  • how to begin your application.

Adult passports are valid for 10 years. If you're 75 or over, you can apply for a senior's passport, which is valid for 5 years and has a lower fee.

A child is defined as a person under 18 years of age who has never married. For children aged 15 and under, passports are valid for 5 years. Those aged 16 and 17 are issued with 10-year passports.

Check with the nearest Australian embassy or consulate for fees in the local currency.

Eligibility

You're an Australian citizen by birth if you were:

  • born in Australia before 20 August 1986, unless your father was a foreign diplomat, or
  • born in Australia on or after 20 August 1986, and one of your parents was an Australian citizen or a permanent resident, or
  • born in Australia on or after 20 August 1986, and you spent the first 10 years of your life in Australia, or
  • born in the former Australian Territory of Papua before 16 September 1975, or 
  • born outside Australia before 26 January 1949 to a father who was born in Australia, and you arrived in Australia prior to 1 May 1987.

You've acquired Australian citizenship if you:

  • were a permanent resident, and adopted in Australia by an Australian citizen, on or after 22 November 1984, or
  • migrated to Australia and became an Australian citizen (this includes children who are on a parent's evidence of citizenship), or
  • applied for citizenship by descent, following your birth overseas to an Australian citizen, or
  • were adopted under 'full and permanent' Hague arrangements and became an Australian citizen, or
  • were a British subject on the 25 January 1949 and you lived in Australia for 5 years from 26 January 1944 until 25 January 1949, or
  • were a British subject on 25 January 1949 and you married an Australian man, entered Australia and was granted permanent residence, before 26 January 1949, or
  • were born in New Guinea and were a British subject on 25 January 1949.
Last updated: 4 October 2022