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High costs, low value: why Australian passport is world’s most expensive

A costly travel essential -- Australians now pay AU$412 for travel access; more than five times costlier than best-value nations while India offers the cheapest passport

Whether you’re flying overseas, embarking on a cruise, or crossing borders by land, a valid passport is the golden ticket to your destination.

Although these small booklets look ‘simple’, they carry vital details — your identity, nationality, and travel history — information authorities rely on to grant you entry abroad. For countries that require visas, passports often serve as the official document to which the visa is linked.

Every country follows its own rules for issuing passports, but there’s one common factor: you have to pay for one. And in 2025, Australian travelers are paying more than anyone else in the world.

A fresh report from Compare the Market Australia confirms that the Australian passport has once again secured the title of the world’s most expensive. Australia, Mexico, and the United Kingdom are among nine countries that saw price hikes in 2025 while India remains the cheapest, with a 10-year passport priced at under AU$30.

For Australians, the cost of a standard 10-year passport now sits at AU$412, a steep climb from AU$346 in early 2024. This marks the second price jump within a year.

The annual Passport Price Index from Compare the Market tracks global costs across 23 countries. In 2025, nine nations experienced increases, including Mexico, where the cost rose AU$14.68 (MX$180) on January 1 and The United Kingdom, which added AU$24.61 (£12.00) to the fee in April 2025.

Interestingly, the most affordable passports have largely avoided cost hikes despite rising living expenses. Countries such as India, Sweden, Kenya, Hungary, and Finland remain on the lower end of the price spectrum, though some still recorded modest increases this year — Sweden: +AU$15.89 (100 kr); Kenya: +AU$32.29 (KSh3,000); Hungary: +AU$26.67 (6,000 Ft) and Finland: +AU$19.53 (€11.00)

For now, Australians continue to face the highest passport costs globally — making international travel an even pricier affair.

Most expensive passports in 2025

Rank Nation Cost of passport 2025 (AUD) Valid for (years) AUD/ year
1 Australia

$412.00

10

$41.20

2 Mexico

$335.95

10

$33.59

3 USA

$251.21

10

$25.12

4 New Zealand

$225.62

10

$22.56

5 Italy

$206.10

10

$20.61

6 Austria

$198.99

10

$19.90

7 UK

$193.78

10

$19.38

8 Canada

$177.61

10

$17.76

9 France

$152.67

10

$15.27

10 Fiji

$152.67

10

$14.29

The cheapest in the world is in India, where it costs just $26.63 for a passport with 10-years’ validity.
Brazil, South Africa, Spain and Poland are also among the cheapest, all costing $59 or less.

Cheapest passports in 2025

Rank Nation Cost of passport 2025 (AUD) Valid for (years) AUD/ year
1 India

$26.63

10

$2.66

2 Brazil

$49.19

10

$4.92

3 South Africa

$50.85

10

$5.08

4 Spain

$53.33

10

$5.33

5 Poland

$58.29

10

$5.83

6 Malaysia

$71.53

5

$14.31

7 Sweden

$79.48

5

$15.90

8 Singapore

$83.15

10

$8.32

9 Kenya

$88.82

10

$8.88

10 Hungary

$88.88

10

$8.89

‘Compare the Market’s 2025 Passport Price Index’ doesn’t just measure the upfront fee of a passport — it also looks at the value based on how many countries each passport opens up without requiring a visa.

Once again, Australia fares poorly. At AU$2.23 per country, Australians are paying the highest cost globally to access 185 visa-free destinations.

By comparison, a UK passport provides entry to 186 visa-free countries and costs just AU$1.04 per country—less than half the Australian rate—while still offering the same 10-year validity period.

Some of the best-value passports in the world include those from Spain, Brazil, Poland, and Malaysia, each averaging around AU$0.40 or less per country. That means Australians are paying more than five times the cost per destination compared to passport holders from these nations.

Adrian Taylor, Executive General Manager of General Insurance at Compare the Market, pointed out that while Australians may not think about it, the high cost of replacing a lost or damaged passport can be significant.

“More than 30,000 Australian passports are reported lost or stolen each year,” Taylor explained. “And given that ours is the most expensive in the world, this is not a cost most travelers plan for in their budget.”

Taylor highlighted that some travel insurance policies cover the expense of replacing a passport abroad, which can help ease the stress if documents are lost or damaged unexpectedly.

He advised travelers to report immediately to the Australian Passport Office or the nearest embassy/consulate if a passport is lost or damaged and to carefully review a travel insurer’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Target Market Determination (TMD) to understand exclusions and coverage limits.

For Australians, the world’s costliest passport not only makes travel more expensive upfront—it also makes safeguarding that small booklet a financial priority.

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