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Hi all, Have you recently applied for a child's 1st UK passport from abroad? If so, can you share your experience in particularly, how long it took from submitting the documents to having the passport in your hand? My wife is expecting a baby in February next year. We want to travel back to the UK ASAP after the birth but obviously we need to wait until the new child's passport arrives. I'm trying to get a feel for how long this will take from people who have actually gone through the process. I've already spoken with the UK passport office and every time I get a different answer ranging from 4 to 14 weeks!

Hi, My wife and I are British expats living in Sydney Australia. We are having a baby next year, after which we plan to return to the UK. The child will automatically be a UK citizen by descent. I'm trying to work out if I should... Apply for a UK passport for my child before travelling back, and enter the UK with all 3 of us on British passports Apply for an AU passport (which is faster) and then enter the UK with the child on an AU passport, and my wife and I using our British passports My thinking is that it is faster and easier to get an AU passport for my child therefore we can move home sooner after the birth. Google however leads me to believe that entering the UK with an AU child passport may create complications at border patrol. It also may prevent the child from being able to access the NHS healthcare system. Does anyone have experience of this / advice that they can share? Thank you in advance.

Hi! i’m from the UK and last year i got my australian citizenship via descent. i went to perth for 3 months in feb of this year and entered without any problems on my british passport (they just had to do some checks when i landed) i was just wondering if it will be fine as next year i’m moving to perth permanently for uni and i still only have my british passport, will it still be fine to enter on the british passport as it’ll be a one way ticket? i’m planning on getting my passport when i get to aus. thanks.

Hi folks, I'm travelling to the UK, Spain and Finland for roughly 5.5 weeks in mid July until mid August this year. My British passport expires on the 22nd August, which is only 1 day after we'd land back to Australia from this trip. I haven't allowed for the full 11 weeks it may take to have my new passport delivered and even though it's a good 6 weeks, I don't like the idea of sending my current passport away and then my new one not returning in time before I have to fly. I do have PR though, so would Border Force be able to access my visa and allow me to fly if I also got an emergency travel document? Is it worth me applying for an emergency travel document anyway or am I correct in thinking that will only last 21 days (less time than the holiday)? Should I just fly outbound with my current passport and organise a new passport in London in the embassy and if so can this process be expedited as I'd be applying for a simple renewal onshore in England? Can I just turn up at the British embassy in Melbourne? I tried calling them but the number provided and the website both ended up being dead ends. Any tips or other suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Hello I'm trying to help my grandparents attain photo IDs or possibly Australian citizenship. They are both over 65 and have been Australian permanent residences for over 50 years. I am not sure of what documentation they have previously received upon entering Australia as they have lost everything, they arrived here from England in 1971 by ship and haven't left since. They are pensioners and have Medicare cards, the only other documentation they have is their proof of arrival to Australia we have attained from the Archives, they also have their birth certificates. We tried to get photo ID from Services Australia but we couldn't as we are told they need a DFTTA (proof of travel document) such as passport or other travel document that they don't have anymore as it was lost and gone a long time ago. If someone would please guide us in the right direction to help us optain the correct documentation we would greatly appreciate it, Thanks

Hi, I have applied for Australian citizenship and met all the criteria. However, after applying, I had to move back to the UK for family reasons so no longer have an address in Australia. I received the citizenship test notification just now and will fly back to Australia to sit the test. My two questions: 1. Does moving back to the UK before the citizenship test effect my application at all? 2. Do I need to update my application to show my UK address? Thanks in advance!

Hi Guys, I recently got married back in October 2019, and I'm going to Europe on my honeymoon. I'm looking in to renewing my passport with my new name and there are some questions I want to ask if people have done the same thing. So the picture I took on my iPhone came up as fair on the passport application, is that ok or do I need a better one? Also the website told me I have to send the original copy of my marriage certificate, I'm unsure of this because I am sending it all the way to England just makes me nervous applying for things such as a passport. If anyone has done the same or been through something similar can you please let me know. Much appreciated

Hi We are due to emigrate to Australia in March, we are all Permanent Residents. Both my sons UK Passports expire in June 2020, will Australia immigration at Heathrow airport let me board the plane as I read they need at least six months on their UK passports to enter Australia? Thanks

So me and my partner have decided to move back to England as we aren’t enjoying to much out here and it’s basically just not for us. He has come out on a permanent residency visa so he just needs to use his English passport but I’m slightly confused as how I’m to go about it. Im not sure which passport to book my ticket with, which passport to show at different times and I wanted to know if anyone has had any trouble travelling with two passports and what I should excpect because if heard it’s pretty stressful. Thank you in advance :)

hi, I am applying for a partner visa online and we have everything all ready to go. The only thing left that is confusing me is the passport photos. So I am guessing we have to scan them if we are applying online - but why do we have to write our names on the back?? How will they be able to see this on a scan? Seems bizarre. Also I am seeing some places that the sponsor also needs to send pics, not just the applicant?? Thanks

New #6 Hi Our daughters passport has been changed as it was coming up to 5 years old and there was not 6 months left on it for when we go on our validation trip this July. I have updated our IMMI account with the new Passport number and it seemed to be fine with a message saying thank you. But the VEVO account in her name still has her OLD Passport number showing on her grant letter. Will we be okay at the airport? We'll bring both passports I think, just encase there is a query, but really would prefer to see her updated passport number on VEVO. Does anyone know anything about this? Thanks Sarah

Hello, I renewed my passport a while ago, with my visa (subclass 100) having been granted almost 4 years back (plan is to move there in July '18). I'm off to Aus at Xmas so emailed the London office (15th Nov '17) to notify them of my change of passport. I filled out a form and scanned the bio pages of both relevant passports. The automated reply said only visas processed in London will be acted upon - no problem. It also said that details of the passport will only be updated in the passport was lost/stolen - I'm confused as surely a renewal counts due to level of recent travel I've had. They don't inform you to notify the update has happened. I fly in 3 weeks and am getting a bit edgy. Any ideas? I guess I'm hoping others have similar experience and can put my mind at ease? Thanks

Hi guys Myself and my family have been on 457 visa's for almost 3 years. Last year I had to get my son a new passport from the UK as his old one was due to run out. We never informed the immigration department of the new passport as we assumed that the 457 visa details would transfer automatically. In March this year I applied for 186 sponsored visa's and I put my son's new passport details in. Have I done wrong in assuming that the 457 visa would automatically transfer onto the new one? I am worried now as I'm not sure how I would go about changing this. I still have his old passport. Can anyone help me? Thanks in advance. Regards Shaun

Hi guys Just wondering if anyone can help? When I submitted our 186 visa application my sons passport had 8 months remaining, in the terms it said it had to have atleast 6 months. His passport has now expired and I'm wondering if this will cause any problems with the visa decision. What I mean is does the passport need to be valid get the visa? We are currently on 457 visas and we have been here almost 3 years. Our application for 186 is still in recieved status and we haven't had a nomination decision yet either. Any help would be much appreciated. Regards Shaun

Hi, Just wondering if anyone knows - I've been reading a few lists of things to do before you leave - we're (hopefully!) moving to Oz in January pending visa approval - will be getting 457 (or are the new ones called a different name?) via my husbands work - and the lists all say make sure you have 2 years left on your passport. Is that a requirement for the visas? I can get a new one fairly easily if necessary but was planning on applying for a new passport in my married name when it expires (which would take significantly longer and most likely would ruin our plans). Do I need to have several years left on my current passport or can I get a visa and enter on this one (will have 7 months left) and then sort any name change etc once I'm there? Just to clarify, if I apply for a renewal here I'll have to apply in my maiden name in order for it to arrive in time. Hope somebody has an idea about this! thanks!

Irish and English couple, aged 33 and 29. Living in Melbourne for 4 years, we both met out here 3 years ago. Recently applied and granted permanent residency. Our plan was to stay for another 2 years to get citizenship and then move back home to get married and start a family. We would then have the flexibility to move back to Australia in our late 30's / early 40's (e.g. when the children are ready for school). The complication for us is the recent change from 2 years to 4 years to apply for citizenship. It makes decisions about where and when to get married, buy a house and start a family a lot harder. We are also struggling with getting good, unbiased advice (for example; family want us back home, friends in Australia want us to stay etc). A lot of peoples point of view doesn't go deeper than the immediate, emotional layer and we need to try and move beyond this. We would like some thoughts on two options we are currently working through: 1. Move back to UK or Ireland within the next few months, with the plan to return within the 5 yr return visa allowed with permanent residency. During our time at home we would likely buy a house and get married (maybe have a child or wait until we get back to Australia - tbc!). On return, we would be settling in Australia and get our citizenship this route. We like this option as our preference is to spend our 30's back with close friends and family. There is obviously a risk with this option that we would not return (and most of our friends believe we won't). 2. We stay for the 4 years and get our citizenship (at this stage we would be 38 and 34). After we get our passport we would likely head back to UK / Ireland for a number of years. During the 4 years, we would want to get married, put our savings down (e.g. buy a house or shares) and maybe even have a child. We would likely organise the wedding from Australia but go back to get married in the UK. On the plus side, we are here now and we will get to citizenship quicker. On the downside, we won't be able to spend these important years with friends and family. Overall, we only know life as a couple living in Australia (as we met here). So although we love it, we don't know what a life would be like living back in UK or Ireland. Add in buying a house, getting married and starting a family during this time - and the decision gets more complex! Thoughts?! What else should we be thinking about to help our decision?

Hi All, We're trying to fill out the 'my health declarations' section on the immiaccount website so that we can get medicals booked. One of the questions is have we ever travelled to Aus before on an old passport and if so give the passport details. Both myself and my husband have, but several years ago and on passports which we renewed 5 years ago - and neither of us can find the old passports!! Has anybody else come across this issue? And if so what did you do please? Many Thanks!

Hi all Looks like we're going to be going 'home' for a visit in early May. All very unexpected, but my husband has to travel to Europe for work, so the rest of us are going to visit our family whilst he works & then he'll joining us afterwards. My dilemma is that three of us will have Aussie passports AND British passports, but my daughter who was born here only has an Aussie one at the moment & looking at the time scale we're going to be pushing it to get a British one processed in time. What I was wondering is there anyone out there that has travelled as a family back to the UK where one of you has had only an Aussie passport? What happens when you get to London? Were there any problems? Many thanks in advance :smile:

Hi, can anyone riddle me this... If I have traveled Australia on a 457 visa for 2 years on the back of my UK passport, is it an option if I'm in dire need to get back that I travel on my Irish passport, again applying for a 457 visa? As as a last resort I'd consider this... whoever can can help please shed some light for me!

A quick question. We're off to Oz shortly for good and took the opportunity to renew the kids passports as they were due to expire early next year and thought it would be easier and cheaper if we renewed them from the UK. Now the new passports have come back and they don't have the visa stamp in it which was present in the old passports. Are we ok to enter Oz with the new passports but also take the old passports that have the visa stamp in it or do we have to do something with the new passports before we go to get the visa transferred from the old to the new !! Thanks in advance. Craig

I could not find any info online for this one wondered if anyone would have any further info here.... I am due to be granted my perm partner visa 801 in around April 2015 (after my 2 years on the 820). My UK passport expires in Feb 2016. Is it a requirement when on the 801 that you have a valid passport? I will be applying for my citizenship ASAP as soon as I have been on the perm visa for a year. Which will be a couple of months after my UK passport expires. It seems such a shame to have to go through sending all my docs off to NZ and paying for a new UK passport when I would be eligible for an Oz one so soon after! I know there are benefits to having the 2, but I don't care too much as my partner is an Aussie I have to wait for him in the passport queue anyway Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of this sort of thing? Thanks

We have been in Australia on a 457 visa for 2.5 years. Oh's company have now started the process to sponsor us on the ENS 856 and have asked us to get our medicals etc sorted out. Problem is, I have misplaced my passport. I usually carry it for driving (being on a 457 and a UK driving license), but a few weeks ago I brought it in to the house because I was applying for a savings account online, and the bank wanted my passport number. So, I know it has been lost in the house, but I have turned the house upside down and cannot find it. My husbands passport (which I had at the same time) is in the safe where it belongs. I can only assume that my passport has somehow been picked up with recycling or something and has been thrown away. There has been no one but friends in the house, so I am confident that it has not been stolen. So, what do I need to do in order to replace it? Would I need to report it lost to the police, or would I only need to do that if it had been stolen? I presume I need to inform DIAC of my new passport number to have my 457 attached to that, but do I need to inform them that my passport has been lost in the interim? Does anyone know how long the new passport will take to come? I am going to have one last look round the house today, but I am pretty sure that it is gone. There is no huge rush. I am being investigated for underactive thyroid, so wasn't going to have medicals until that was sorted out anyway. Thanks!

G'day, Does anyone know if there is a restriction on the expiry date you must have on your UK passport before emigrating to Oz? For example, we are coming over on a 457 visa, with my passport expiring in 3 years (2017)and my wife's in 4 years (2018). I'm worried that when we land in Melbourne the customs people stops us and turns us around back to the UK because our passport expiry is too short!? Sorry if this topic has been covered, thanks for any input. Cheers all,

Hi can anyone help with some advice on this tricky situation? My Husband was born in Australia and has dual nationality with the UK. We are currently in Australia but unfortunately he has lost/misplaced both his UK and Australian passports which would both have expired anyway. We want to return to the UK where both of our families are and may need to do so urgently and permanently due to very difficult and complex health issues. We just don't know which passport would be the quickest and cheapest to go for in this case?

Hi all. I lodged an application for a renewal of my passport on the 29th Mar and old passport/paperwork was sent by courier and arrived on the 4th April, I have called them a few times and they are absolutely useless, I was supposed to be flying to HK tomorrow morning but my passport doesn't seem to have left the UK let alone arrived in Perth, is anyone else currently waiting a long time or is it just me? the website advises at least 4 weeks from receipt of docs and on Friday it will be 6 weeks, On a seperate note do I need to link my visa to the new passport or is it all electronic now? Cheers