Terms and conditions

to be bound by these terms and conditions;
to comply with all of your responsibilities, as set out in these terms and conditions; and
acknowledge and consent to your personal information being managed by the department as set out in these terms and conditions.

Certain components of the AusPassport account are provided by Microsoft Azure and Whispir. Before creating, accessing or using a AusPassport account you must agree to our disclosing and storing of your Security Details through the Microsoft Azure services within Australia. You must also agree to our disclosing and storing of your email and phone number through Whispir services within Australia. Your continued use of your account will constitute your agreement to the disclosing and storing of your Security Details through the Microsoft Azure services within Australia and your email and phone number through Whispir services in Australia. We may, from time to time, modify or remove the components of the AusPassport account which are provided by Microsoft Azure and Whispir and replace them with third-party products or components. You acknowledge that we may notify you of additional third-party terms and conditions that apply to your access and use of your account.

By accepting these terms and conditions, you are accepting them for each time you access your AusPassport account. In the event that you are unwilling to be bound by these terms and conditions, you must immediately cease using your account and notify us in writing.

Some of the words in these terms and conditions have a particular meaning. These words, and the meaning of these words, are set out in the definitions table at Section 8. You should refer to the definitions table when reading these terms and conditions.

1.2 About using the AusPassport account

The AusPassport account is operated by the Commonwealth of Australia, as represented by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (“department”, “us”, “we” and “our”).

To use an AusPassport account you need to register using a valid email address and mobile phone number via a Multi Factor Authentication (MFA) process. You may only complete the registration of one account using this email address. MFA adds extra security to prevent anyone, besides you, from gaining access to your account, even if your password is stolen, because it requires users to provide unique authentication from your email and phone number in addition to your password to access your account.

You must verify your email address and phone number before you are able to access the AusPassport account. A verification pin will be sent to your email and a separate verification pin will be sent to your mobile phone number from the department. Your account is only created after you verify your details, no personal details are stored until the account is verified.

1.3 Changes to the AusPassport account and these terms and conditions

We may change, add or remove any of the functionality available in your AusPassport account, or make changes to these terms and conditions, at any time at our discretion without reference to you. It is your responsibility to ensure you are aware of any changes to these terms and conditions each time you access the AusPassport account. Any changes to these terms and conditions take effect from midnight AEDT on the date of change and will apply to your use of your AusPassport account. Your continued use of your AusPassport account after any changes to these terms and conditions indicates that you have read, understood and agreed to those changes.

These terms and conditions replace any terms and conditions you may have previously accepted which covered your use of the AusPassport account.

2 Your responsibilities

2.1 Accessing and using your AusPassport account

You will need to:

be a natural person over the age of 18 years to apply for a passport online; and
use your Security Details to access your account.

You must only use your account to perform Designated Activities in connection with:

your own personal Australian passport; or
an Australian passport on behalf of a child or adult on whose behalf you are authorised to perform the Designated Activities, for example, for a child for whom you have parental responsibility or for an adult who is physically or mentally unable to use the services.

If you use your account to perform the Designated Activities in connection with someone else’s Australian passport, and you are authorised to do so, that person is bound by the terms of the Electronic Transactions Act 1999.

2.2 What to do if someone you know needs an interpreter to access an AusPassport account?

Ask the person to contact the Australian Passport Information Service (APIS) on 131 232 in Australia. If the person needs an interpreter, APIS can arrange one through the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) at no cost. To contact APIS with the assistance of a phone interpreter, call TIS on 131 450.

If they are overseas, they can contact the nearest Australian diplomatic or consular mission.

2.3 Keeping your Security Details safe

You must:

keep your Security Details secure at all times and not share them with any other person; and
understand your responsibility for access and use of your AusPassport account (see section 2.5).

2.4 What to do if you think your AusPassport account has been compromised

If you think that the security of your AusPassport account may have been compromised (for example, if your account may have been accessed by another person) you must immediately change your password and advise APIS on 131 232 in Australia. If you are overseas, you can contact the nearest Australian diplomatic or consular mission.

2.5 Responsibility for access and use of your AusPassport account

We assume that all actions undertaken using your Security Details were undertaken by you, unless you have informed us that your AusPassport account has been compromised. We are not liable for any Loss or damage that you may incur as a result of someone else using your Security Details, either with or without your knowledge or consent.

Any failure by you to keep your Security Details secure may result in unauthorised actions being undertaken or unauthorised access to and use of your personal information in your AusPassport account.

If you don’t keep your Security Details secure (see section 2.3), and someone else uses them to access your account, you will be responsible for everything they do with your account.

If you comply with the security requirements in these terms and conditions, you will not be responsible for any unauthorised access to your account. For example, if your account is accessed by an unauthorised person, as a result of fraud, you will not be responsible for the actions of that unauthorised person.

2.6 How you must not use your AusPassport account

You must not use your AusPassport account:

to verify or seek to verify personal information of individuals, either manually or using software or other means, even if you have the individual’s consent;
in a way that infringes anyone else’s rights or prevents them from using their own AusPassport account;
in any way which may harass or cause distress or inconvenience to anyone;
to cause disruption to AusPassport accounts or any Commonwealth of Australia website;
to post or transmit unlawful, defamatory, obscene, offensive, or scandalous material or any other material that could give rise to civil or criminal liability;
to participate in any illegal (including fraudulent) activity; or
to post or transmit material that breaks or encourages breaking the law.

If you use your AusPassport account to do any of the above things, your account may be locked, suspended or terminated and you may face civil or criminal penalties.

You must not use software (for example, bots or scraper tools) or other automatic devices to access, monitor or copy any AusPassport account or content, including your AusPassport account or content.

We may monitor use of your account for the purposes of ensuring compliance with these terms and conditions.

2.7 Information that you provide in your AusPassport account and compliance with laws

You must comply with all relevant laws when using your AusPassport account, including but not limited to the Australian Passports Act 2005.

You need to provide complete, true and accurate information when using your account.

It is a criminal offence under the Australian Passports Act 2005 to, in relation to Australian passports, make false or misleading statements, to provide false or misleading information or to produce false or misleading documents (there are penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment or a fine of 1000 penalty units, or both).

The Australian Passports Act 2005 also allows the department to refuse to process an application for an Australian passport if it has reasonable grounds to suspect fraud or dishonesty in an Australian passport application.

If you access your account from outside Australia you do so at your own risk and are responsible for complying with the local laws of the country where you are located.

2.8 Availability of your account

If your account is not available for any reason or you wish to close your account, you can contact the department in writing, by telephone or in person by using the details at Getting help.

3 Our responsibilities

3.1 What we are responsible for

We will take reasonable care in providing information and services through the AusPassport account.

The department is also responsible for managing any personal information collected in accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act).

3.2 What we are not responsible for

The department is not responsible for ensuring:

that the AusPassport account is error free;
that any defects in the AusPassport account will be rectified;
that there will be no connectivity problems with accessing your AusPassport account;
that you will have continuous access to your AusPassport account; or
that your AusPassport account cannot be hacked or attacked.

The department is not responsible for any Loss that could arise as a result of:

your use of your AusPassport account, except where these terms specifically say that the department is responsible; or
your inability to access your AusPassport account.

3.3 Security

The department is responsible for taking all reasonable steps to ensure the security of information while it is being collected by, stored on or passing through your AusPassport account.

Your Security Details are disclosed to and held by Microsoft Azure. Your email and phone number are disclosed to and held by Whispir. Your other account information can only be accessed by department officers who are allowed to access this information. All access by department officers to the AusPassport account is audited by the department, and officers are trained on a regular basis about their privacy and security obligations.

3.4 Privacy

Your personal information is protected by law under the Privacy Act, and is managed by the department as set out in section 5 of these terms and conditions and the department’s Privacy Policy.

4 How we will communicate with you

4.1 Communicating with you

By creating your AusPassport account you are agreeing to receive at your nominated email address and/or mobile phone number, emails and/or text messages from the department in connection with:

your Australian passport application and your Australian passport;
an Australian passport application or Australian passport for a child for whom you have parental responsibility; or
an Australian passport application prepared by you on behalf of another person who has given you authorisation.

Emails we send to you will be from the following domains: passports.gov.au, dfat.gov.au and humanservices.gov.au. We recommend that you:

add these domains to the list of safe senders so that communications from the department are not redirected to your junk mail; and
check your junk email folder regularly, for any communications from the department.

You will also receive emails and texts from the department through the Whispir platform.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you read all communications from us in a timely manner. The department is not responsible for any loss that may arise as a result of you not accessing an email or text message including if it is directed to your junk email folder, or if there is a delivery failure, or as a result of you allowing someone else to access your email account or mobile phone.

If you incorrectly receive an email or text message addressed to another person, any use of the information contained is prohibited. Please notify APIS on 131 232 and delete the email or text message immediately.

4.2 Phishing scams

Phishing scams are attempts by scammers to trick you into giving out personal information.

Other than the initial account verification email and SMS, the department will never send you an email asking you to log in to your account by clicking on a link or to provide or confirm your personal details. If you receive a phishing email or something that you suspect may be a phishing email, please notify APIS on 131 232 immediately.

For more information about phishing scams, see Scamwatch.

5 Personal information and privacy

The department handles and protects personal information in accordance with these terms and conditions, the department’s Privacy Policy and Australian Law, including the Australian Passports Act 2005 and the Privacy Act.

We take all reasonable steps to protect your personal information from misuse, interference and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

5.1 Your AusPassport account and privacy

Where you are providing personal information about another person via your AusPassport account, for example referees and other persons with parental responsibility for a child, you must:

advise the person about this privacy information set out in section 5 of these terms and conditions;
obtain consent from the individual to provide their personal information to the department.

All references to personal information in this section need to be read as including a reference to the personal information of that person.

If you have any questions or concerns about how personal information is managed by the department, contact:

Director, Privacy Law, Legislation and Assurance Section
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
RG Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
BARTON ACT 0221
Email: privacy@dfat.gov.au

5.2 Collection of your personal information

The department collects personal information about you when you use your account. This includes:

basic identifying details, including but not limited to your name, date of birth, email address, and phone number when you create an account. These details are also disclosed to and held by Microsoft Azure and Whispir;
more detailed personal information provided to establish entitlement to an Australian passport or other Australian travel documents, including but not limited to your identity, citizenship or nationality, details of identification documents, your answers to questions in the passport application, application checklist or form, and biometric information including your photo and signature; and;
information about your user activity while using your AusPassport account is retained in an audit log, including your IP address, your log in and attempted log ins and other technical information relevant to the operation of your account and use of the system.

5.3 Personal information collected about others

Where you are accessing your AusPassport account on behalf of someone else, we will collect personal information about that person from you.

We also collect personal information about people who are not applying for an Australian passport when those people are named in an Australian passport application. This may include emergency contacts, referees, persons with parental responsibility (for child Australian passport applications), an applicant’s parents or grandparents to establish citizenship, or persons completing or lodging an application on behalf of someone else.

If you provide information using your AusPassport account about an individual other than yourself, you must advise the individual about the terms and conditions set out on this website, including those relating to privacy, and have the individual’s consent to the department Microsoft Azure and Whispir using or disclosing their personal information as set out in the terms and conditions. You confirm that you have the necessary authority to undertake any action which you perform on behalf of that other individual. You must only undertake actions on the AusPassport account on behalf of another individual within the scope of authorisation granted by that individual.

5.4 Personal information collected about you from other sources

In accordance with the Australian Passports Act 2005, we may collect personal information about you from other individuals, entities, as well as government and law enforcement agencies for a number of purposes, including to verify the information you have given to us in an Australian passport application or where those agencies believe there are reasons related to law enforcement or security for refusing or cancelling a travel document.

Without limitation, this includes personal information we collect about you using the Face Verification Service (FVS). The FVS is a one-to-one image based verification service that can match a person’s photo against an image on one of their government records.

If you have a consular record, we may access your consular record to verify any information provided in a passport application. By agreeing to these terms and conditions, you consent to the department using your consular records for the purposes of verifying or authenticating information supplied in a passport application.

5.5 Why we collect personal information

The department collects personal information to issue and administer Australian passports and for other consular purposes. For example, the department collects emergency contact details so it can contact someone if you are involved in an incident while overseas. As part of the Australian passport application process, we need to perform data verification and fraud related checks in relation to the information you provide throughout the application.

We also collect information about your user activity when using your AusPassport account for security and fraud related purposes, as well as to allow us to improve users’ experience when accessing an AusPassport account.

5.6 Consequences if you do not provide personal information

The department must verify identity and citizenship details for an Australian passport to be issued. If you do not provide the requested personal information about you or the applicant, we cannot confirm these details and we cannot issue an Australian passport.

5.7 Who we disclose your personal information to

In accordance with the Australian Passports Act 2005, the department can disclose your personal information and the personal information of other people provided in a passport application to a number of individuals, entities and Australian and foreign government agencies, including:

the Australian Electoral Commission;
the Department of Home Affairs;
State and Territory police, and the Australian Federal Police;
Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission;
Interpol;
State and Territory registries of Births, Deaths and Marriages;
State and Territory road traffic authorities;
the Department of Defence;
State, Territory and federal Courts; and
Microsoft Azure and Whispir;
entities or individuals who issued or signed a document that was part of an Australian passport application or who are mentioned in that application.

The department may also disclose your personal information to another government agency provided that disclosure is authorised by law. For example this would include disclosure to the Australian Taxation Office, or to an agency authorised to access the Facial Matching Service including Facial Verification Service (FVS) which are managed by the Department of Home Affairs.

The FVS is a one-to-one verification service that uses an individual’s passport number, biographic data and/or facial image to verify the passport holder’s details.

Individuals who provide their Australian passports to public or private sector organisations as proof of identity may be asked to consent to have the data verified by the department via the Document Verification Service (DVS) and/or the FVS which are managed by the Department of Home Affairs. Provided the organisation is an approved DVS or FVS user, the department will verify the data and confirm the validity of the document.

1. Disclosure of personal information to overseas recipients

The department may disclose your personal information to overseas recipients where authorised by law, including under the Australian Passports Act 2005 and the Privacy Act 1988. These overseas recipients may include Interpol, as well as foreign governments, border authorities and agencies.

If you supply personal information to us about another person, and you access your AusPassport account from outside Australia or Australia’s external Territories, you represent and warrant that:

you have advised the individual that you will be accessing the AusPassport account outside Australia or Australia’s external Territories;
the individual has consented to you accessing their personal information, including any sensitive information, through the AusPassport account from outside Australia or Australia’s external Territories; and
the individual is aware that if you breach the Australian Privacy Principles, the department will not be accountable under the Privacy Act and that they will not be able to seek redress from the department under the Privacy Act.

5.9 Why do we disclose your personal information?

Under the Australian Passports Act 2005, the department is authorised to disclose your personal information:

to confirm or verify information relating to an applicant for, or holder of, an Australian passport;
to provide advice about the status of an Australian passport;
to facilitate or assist with your, or another Australian passport holder’s, international travel; and
for law enforcement, family law and related matters, or for the purpose of specified parts of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999, Paid Parental Leave Act 2010, and Social Security Act 1991.

We may also use or disclose your personal information with your consent or where it is otherwise authorised by the Privacy Act, including (but not limited to) where authorised under an Australian law, where the use or disclosure is reasonably necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to the life, health or safety of an individual, or to public health or safety or where the use or disclosure is reasonably necessary in order for the department or another government agency to take appropriate action in relation to suspected unlawful activity or misconduct.

5.10 Use and disclosure of your personal information for other limited purposes

Your personal information may also be used or disclosed to investigate and prosecute any unauthorised use by you of your AusPassport account.

In addition, the department may use any current and past information provided by you for testing, quality assurance, training, analytics and research purposes and to inform system and program design. This includes disclosing personal information to any external contractors or consultants engaged to assist the department. This applies even if you never submit or if you withdraw your application. We may also use the contact details you provide to contact you to participate in surveys or other similar market research projects conducted by the department. This includes the department disclosing your contact details to third parties engaged to conduct surveys or other similar market research projects on behalf of the department. If you object to your personal information being used in this way, please call the Australian Passport Information Service on 131 232.

5.11 Privacy Policy

See the department’s Privacy Policy for further information, including how to:

access and seek corrections to your personal information; and
complain about a possible breach of the Australian Privacy Principles and how we manage complaints.

You can obtain further information about your rights under the Privacy Act from the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner

6. Disclaimer and Indemnity

6.1 Disclaimer of liability

To the extent permissible by law, we disclaim and exclude any terms and conditions implied by law relating to any Loss that may be suffered by you from using the AusPassport account. We also disclaim and exclude to the extent permissible by law all warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy of any information contained in your personal information. If the law implies any warranty which cannot be excluded, then to the extent permissible by law, our liability for failure to comply with any such warranty is limited, at our option and as determined by us, to the resupply of the access to an AusPassport account.

You agree to release us from all liability in contract, or in tort, or pursuant to any other common law or statutory cause of action arising under this agreement or in connection with your use of this site, for any Loss, including but not limited to liability for an entity carrying out, or failing to carry out, any activity described in, or contemplated by, any document published by us relating to AusPassport.

6.1 Indemnity

You agree to indemnify us from and against all actions, proceedings, claims, demands, costs, Losses, including those arising out of the terms of any settlement, that may be brought against us by a third party arising out of or as a consequence of a breach by you of these terms and conditions by you or any wilful, unlawful, or negligent act or omission by you relating in any way to any AusPassport account or content. Your liability to indemnify us under this section 6.1 will be reduced proportionately to the extent that any negligent or other tortious act or omission of the department contributed to the relevant loss or damage.

7 General

7.1 Suspension or termination of your account access

The department may lock, suspend or terminate your account at any time without notice.

The department is not responsible for any loss that could arise as a result of the department locking, suspending or terminating your account.

7.2 Laws relating to these terms and conditions

The laws of the Australian Capital Territory, Australia (ACT) govern these terms and conditions.

You submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the ACT in relation to these terms and conditions.The department may consider any reasonable request to bring legal action in a different State or Territory if there are appropriate reasons for doing so (for example, if you are unable to travel due to medical reasons).

7.3 Getting help

If you require assistance with your AusPassport account you can contact the Australian Passport Information Service (APIS) on 131 232 if you are in Australia. If you need an interpreter, APIS can arrange an interpreter through the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) at no cost to you. To contact APIS with the assistance of a phone interpreter, call TIS on 131 450.

If you are overseas, contact your nearest Australian diplomatic or consular mission.

7.4 Complaints and feedback

Your feedback is important to us, we value your opinion and want to hear what you think about the quality of the department’s service.

You can leave your feedback online (by clicking on this link or wherever 'Feedback' is available in the footer on our website) or by writing to:

Australian Passport Office – Communications Section

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

R.G. Casey Building

John McEwen Crescent

Barton ACT 0221

8 Definitions

Term	Meaning
Australian passport	For the purpose of these terms and conditions, an Australian passport is taken to include a travel-related document as defined in the Australian Passports Act 2005.
Department, us, we, our	The Commonwealth of Australia as represented by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or any Australian Government department which takes over the relevant passport functions of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Designated Activities	The Designated Activities are: commence, resume and update an online application and create an application checklist/form for the issue of an Australian passport; and track a passport application.
Loss	Any loss, damage, cost or expense (to any person or property), including: loss of profits or revenue, loss or denial of opportunity, loss of use, loss of data, and any indirect, remote, abnormal or unforeseeable loss
Multi Factor Authentication (MFA)	Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a security measure that requires two or more proofs of identity to grant you access to your AusPassport account
Natural Person	An individual human being, not a corporate entity, a robot, a software program etc
AusPassport account	The account through which details about an Australian passport applications process can be accessed at https://online.passports.gov.au
Personal Information	Personal Information is as defined in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)
Security Details	The phone number, email address and password used to access your AusPassport account
You, Your	You, the reader of these terms and conditions and user of the AusPassport account
Your account	Your AusPassport account