Hey, you. Yes, you. If you’ve been putting off renewing your passport, it’s time to get your act together. Wait any longer and it’ll cost you even more than it does right now.
That’s right, after increasing UK passport fees for the first time in half a decade last year, the Home Office is once again upping the cost.
Tomorrow (April 11), the cost of online applications for people over 16 is due to increase from £82.50 to £88.50 – that’s a more than seven percent increase. For under 16s, it will go up from £53.50 to £57.50. At least our little travel books are more powerful than they were last year, eh?
In a statement, the Home Office said: ‘The new fees will help ensure that income from these applications better meets the cost of delivering passport and associated operations, reducing reliance on funding from general taxation.
‘The government does not make any profit from the cost of passport applications. 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 increase will also help enable the Government to continue improving its services.’
Hidden travel costs
When budgeting for a holiday, we all take into account stuff like flights, accommodation, insurance and the many Aperol Spritzes that will be consumed. But, like passport fees, there are several other things that might make your trip more spenny than originally planned. Take Air Passenger Duty, which has just increased, or all the destinations that have recently introduced tourist taxes.
And speaking of passports, here’s why you might not even need a physical one in the not-too-distant future.
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