Australian passport requirements

Message to Australians in Mexico, Central America, Cuba and the Dominican Republic regarding Australian Passport services

In response to the Corona Virus (COVID-19), including measures put in place by local authorities, changes have been made to our services.  These changes are intended to protect you (our clients), our staff and the wider community.

If you require a passport, please contact the Embassy on [email protected] or DFAT’s Consular Emergency Centre in Canberra on +61 2 6261 3305 or SMS on +61 421 269 080 to discuss your situation and for further advice.

At this time:

• Depending on your circumstance, you may be issued a passport with limited validity if staying in country, and/or an emergency passport if leaving the country to go back to Australia, or for other locations that accepts emergency passports.  The maximum period a passport will be issued for without a face to face interview is 12 months.

• You can mail in passport applications for renewals, replacements and new applications.

• You must include your photo consistent with Australia’s passport guidelines. You can take your own photo with your smart phone or digital camera and send it by e-mail as JPEG format.

• You may need to provide Australian citizenship evidence, and meet child consent requirements, if applicable.

• Existing clients do not need to mail in their current passport as you may require this for residential purposes.

• Do not need to mail in their current passport as you may require this for residential or urgent travel purposes.

• The situation surrounding COVID-19 continues to evolve.  Please regularly monitor this website and smartraveller for details.

How to obtain an Australian passport in Mexico

Note: All Australian overseas passport applications require a personal interview at an Australian mission.  The Passport Office at the Australian Embassy in Mexico City does not book appointments, however you are welcome to come in Monday to Friday, from 8:30 am to 1:00 pm, and 2:30 to 4:30 pm.

The Australian Honorary Consulates in the region do, however, work on an appointment basis.  Please contact them by email.  Their contact details can be found here.

Applicants in Cuba and the Dominican Republic, where Australia has no mission or Honorary Consul, will be required to present for interview at their nearest or most convenient Australian mission.  Minors under 16 years of age are not required to be present at the interview, however one person with paternal responsibility for the child must present for an interview.

From 1 July 2015, passport applications lodged overseas will incur an additional fee (overseas surcharge).  The fee will not apply to emergency passport applications.

The Embassy will be closed for the following public holidays in 2020:

Monday 1 June

Wednesday 16 September

Monday 16 November

Friday 25 December

Monday 28 December

Tuesday 29 December

Wednesday 30 December

Thursday 31 December.

Passport photographs

The size and quality of your passport photographs is of critical importance.  The size of your head in the photograph must comply with Australian passport requirements, which may differ from passport photograph standards of other countries.  Familiarise yourself with these requirements and ensure you submit compliant photos.  Your application may be rejected because of unsuitable photographs.

Translations

All supporting documents that are not in English must be accompanied by a sworn translation.  This includes documents such as foreign birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, name change certificates and court orders.  Please note that both the original foreign language document and the original translation must be submitted with your passport application.

The Embassy can provide you with a list of recognised translators.  Please request a list from the Passport Office in Mexico City at [email protected] or by phone at +5255 1101 2256.

Application

The suggested procedure for preparing your passport application form is as follows:

1. Access the online forms at http://www.passports.gov.au/ and complete the proper application.

2. Read the instruction sheets and checklist for your form and ensure that you are submitting all the items necessary for your application.

3. Print the completed application form.  Please change the configuration of your printer to letter size if you are applying in Mexico or Central America.

Referee/Guarantor 

A Referee/Guarantor is required for the PC8 (Application for an Australia Passport Overseas) only. If you do not know an Australian who can meet the requirements as your Referee/Guarantor at section 11 on page 3 of the application, you may use a Referee/Guarantor who does not hold an Australian passport as long as he or she is currently employed in one of the approved professional or occupation groups listed below, and:

• is not related to you by birth or marriage,
• is not in a de facto relationship with you,
• does not live at the same address,
• is over 18 years of age,
• has known you for at least 12 months, and
• is readily available to discuss your application during normal business hours.

Approved professional or occupation groups

• Accountants who are members of either the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants, National Institute of Accountants or Association of Taxation and Management Accountants.. Specify which membership status applies.
• Bailiffs
• Barristers, Solicitors and Patent Attorneys Bank Managers except managers of bank travel centres
• Chartered Professional Engineers
• Clerk of Courts
• Clerk of Petty Sessions
• Dentists
• Elected Representatives of Federal Parliaments, State Parliaments, Territory Parliaments, Legislative Assembly of Norfolk Island and Municipal or Shire Councils
• Holders of Statutory Offices for which an annual salary is payable
• Judges
• Marriage Celebrants
• Members currently serving in the regular Australian Defence Force with at least five years continuous service
• Members of the Governance Institute of Australia (formerly Chartered Institute of Company Secretaries)
• Pharmacists
• Police Officers with at least 5 years continuous service
• Postal Managers
• Public Servants who are current full-time employees of Commonwealth, State, territory or local Governments or Statutory Authorities and who have been employed continuously for at least 5 years by their current employer
• Registered Chiropractors
• Registered Medical Practitioners
• Registered Nurses
• Registered Optometrists
• Registered Physiotherapists
• Registered Psychologists
• Registered Tax Agents
• Registered Veterinary Surgeons
• Sheriffs
• Stipendiary Magistrates
• Teachers who are full time and who have been teaching for more than five years at schools or tertiary institutions

Travel Document Fees as at June 2020

Payments for Australian travel documents, consular and courier fees will only be accepted by VISA or MASTERCARD.

For payments outside Mexico, please download the Credit Card Authorisation Form.

Passports are valid for 10 years (adults) or 5 years (children and adults aged 75 years and over).

Processing time

The processing time for a passport is approximately three weeks (or 15 working days) from the time that the completed application is received. 

If you have any further questions, please contact the Consular and Passports Section of the Australian Embassy in Mexico City at

+52 (55) 1101 2256 or [email protected].

Children born of surrogacy

We strongly advise Australians who are considering international commercial surrogacy arrangement to obtain information on the legal and other risks involved, and to seek independent legal advice regarding Australian and foreign laws.  For more information, see our Surrogacy Bulletin on smartraveller. 

Before to apply for an Australian passport you would need to obtain Australian Citizenship, for children born overseas, see international Surrogacy Arrangements on the website of the Department of Home Affairs.

For general information on children´s passport applications and supporting documentation, visit the Australians Passports website.