The cost of a British passport is to rise again in another cost-of-living blow for holidaymakers, the Home Office has announced. Ministers have agreed to a 7% rise in the price of the vital travel document, which comes on top of last year’s identical 7% hike.
The fee for a standard online passport application made within the UK will increase from £88.50 to £94.50 for adults, and from £75.50 to £61.50 for children. Postal applications will rise from £100 to £107 for adults and from £69 to £74 for children. Those travelling abroad who need to use the Passport Office’s Premium Service, which gets the booklet sorted in just one day, will also have to fork out an additional £14.50 compared to the current £207.50 cost.
Defending the blow to hard-pressed tourists, the Government argued the fees “will help the Home Office to continue to move towards a system that meets its costs through those who use it, reducing reliance on funding from general taxation”.
“The Government does not make any profit from the cost of passport applications.”
The announcement added: “The fees contribute to the cost of processing passport applications, consular support overseas, including for lost or stolen passports, and the cost of processing British citizens at UK borders.”
The Home Office warned those requiring a new passport to apply “in good time before travelling”.
The cost of a UK passport has risen by 142.7% in real terms since 1992, well above the 116% rise in overall inflation during the same period.
The rise is subject to parliamentary approval by MPs.