How to get a child passport

4-step guide

Step 1: Gather original documents and two passport photos

You will need:

Details from these documents will be needed to complete your application. You must bring the original documents with you to show us when you lodge the application.

Step 2: Ask someone to be the child’s guarantor

A guarantor must sign section 11 of the application form.  The guarantor must also endorse the back of a passport photo by writing ‘This is a true photo of [the child’s full name]’ and signing in black pen.

When applying in Australia, your guarantor must be:

  • an adult Australian citizen who has known the child for more than one year (or since the child was born if they are younger than one year old).

Your guarantor cannot be:

  • related in any way to the child or to a person who has parental responsibility for the child, or in a de facto relationship with the person who has parental responsibility, or living at the same address as the child or a person with parental responsibility.

Step 3: Fill in the application

Application forms are available online.  Our system will generate an application form that you will need to print.  The application form will tell you which documents you must bring when you lodge your printed application form.

If you cannot complete an application form online, collect a blank application form at a participating Australia Post outlet.  Ask for the ‘Application for an Australian Passport - Child’ form.  For children, the form is purple.

Consent is required for a child passport.  Everyone who’s giving consent must sign section 15 of the form in front of a witness.  If they can’t easily do that because they’re in different parts of the world, follow our instructions.

Children aged 10 and over must sign section 16 of the form if applying in Australia.

Step 4: Lodge your application and pay the fee

In Australia, you can lodge the child’s application and pay the passport fee at a participating Australia Post outlet.

You may need to make an appointment, which can be made by using the Australia Post online booking tool.

You must bring your completed application form, your child’s passport photos and the original documents requested on the application form.

You will also need to bring a proof of your identity (such as a driver licence) that includes your name, photo, signature and residential address.

If you’re applying for a child aged 16 or 17, the child must come with you when you lodge the application.

Important information

If you’re in Australia, and your child has a current passport, it will be cancelled when their passport application is assessed.  This means they will be unable to use it for travel. If they need to travel before the new passport is received, you should call us on 131 232 to check if the old passport is still valid. For more information, see our passport validity page.

Please allow a minimum of 6 weeks to receive your child’s passport after you lodge the application.

A child passport application without consent from everyone who has parental responsibility takes much longer.

If you’re in a hurry, we have options for urgent applications which are available only at the time of lodgement.

When your child’s passport is ready, we will send you instructions by email or SMS, depending on the contact details you provided. If you choose to receive your passport by post, it should arrive within 5 business days. If you choose to collect your passport, it will be ready for pick-up from your chosen Passport Office.

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