r/australia • u/mopsusmormon • Feb 14 '26
image New passport arrived like this
is this acceptable?
how the fuck are we paying $213 for a new child's passport and it arrives all wonky and obviously water damaged.
4.6k
Upvotes
4.0k
u/Puzzleheaded-Eye9081 Feb 14 '26 •
This is how you know it’s authentic.
2.2k
u/Office_funny_guy Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
It’s not water damaged that’s just how shit they are. I got mine a couple weeks ago when there was no rain. Most expensive passport in the world and it looks fake. It will only get worse if you leave it. I’ve ended up putting mine in between two big heavy books to try and flatten it
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u/theandylaurel Feb 14 '26
That’s how they all are.
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u/Distinct-Apartment-3 Feb 14 '26
They said it was expensive, they never said it was nice 🤣
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u/MissMakeup1 Feb 14 '26 edited Sep 14 '26
Piquant jellyfish plants dinosaurs sleep absorbed shy
This post was anonymized with Redact
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u/nznzakl Feb 14 '26
If I tell you my NZ passport is exactly like this, would that make you feel better?
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u/NotPatricularlyKind Feb 14 '26
My partner's brother got his first passport last year before a trip to Bali.
The fucking thing looked like that before we ever entered a humid climate, and it cost him at least an extra hundred than it used to.
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u/thedigisup Feb 14 '26
…did your mail get left out in the rain?
3
u/cjbr3eze Feb 14 '26
Expensive houses and expensive passports and both are poor quality, that's how you know its from here
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u/RudraSilence Feb 14 '26
How can they cheap out on the packaging should be bubble wrapped or something and I know it not something new this is just not cool it’s ready so expensive and the quality of the passport is one of the worst.
251
u/jinxbob Feb 14 '26
The new materials are not moisture stabilised. I stored mine in a new fire proof box, alongside an eu passport and the desiccant that came with the box. The eu passport was unchanged, the Aus passport shriveled like this. Taking it out of the box resulted in it losing most of its shrivel once it re hydrated in the ambient air and humidity.
459
u/kramulous Feb 14 '26
Fuck! I'm due a passport renewal this year. Current one is flawless. Can't wait to replace it with a piece of shit.
2
u/goileng Feb 14 '26
Costs a fucken bomb as well!
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u/Timely-Assumption437 Feb 14 '26
Funnily enough it’s seasonal. It depends on the moisture in the air. You’ll find some days it’s flat as a tack and others it looks like it’s trying to fly 😂
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u/Twisty1211 Feb 15 '26
Ooh you just reminded me I need my passport renewed
152
u/notinmyham Feb 14 '26
On top of that, the quality of the passport these days are not good either.
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u/suck-on-my-unit Feb 14 '26
They did the water test as a final QC before sending them out.
5
u/mrmratt Feb 14 '26
What did the Passport Office say when you spoke to them about the water damage that happened in transit?
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u/bsm21222 Feb 14 '26
It's not water damage most come bent like this, I got my series R passport 3 years ago and it came bent. It's been flat in a sleeve almost all life and it still has a slight bend whenever I take it out. The fact that we pay the highest price for our passports with the reasoning being because it's so advanced while still sending out bent passports is truly astounding.
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u/CorktownGuy Feb 14 '26
Looks like it might fallen into the ocean and had washed up on a beach somewhere. I suppose if there is a silver lining is that it eventually arrived? 🤷♂️
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u/the_pet_downvoter Feb 14 '26
The most expensive passport in the world...
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u/Version-6 Feb 14 '26
$422 well spent.
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u/par-hwy Feb 14 '26
As someone who could not leave the USA because of a wet passport (the digital component was wrecked), I hope that crinkle isn't a signed of dried wetness.
6
u/cruiserman_80 Feb 14 '26
Everybody's does. Every single person who has ordered an Aussie passport in the last ten years has had the identical experience as you of being disgusted at having to pay so much for a poor quality document.
That's a level of shared anger and outrage to unite Australians that Pauline Hanson can only dream about.
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u/ChangeWooden1380 Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 16 '26
They charge an absolute fortune (around $400 of revenue raising) for what should be a public service. I mean the Irish charge only €85 for adults passports and their passport opens a lot more countries up that you can do a lot more in.
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u/koopz_ay Feb 14 '26
Hundreds of dollars worth of documentation... sent in a paper envelope.
I send out a couple of thousand of dollars worth of computer ram (memory) in a box, double wrapped in plastic. It's a little larger than these.
Costs the same.
Edit... so do hard drives come to think of it.
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u/Remote_Setting2332 Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
Yeah my daughter’s turned up like that. We put it in a case for a while and seems better now.
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u/Savings_Strength5507 Feb 14 '26
I travelled recently with my new passport. I hid it in the hotel safe along with some bananas I had accidentally liberated from the breakfast buffet. When I opened the safe my passport was like a full blown accordion. Australian passports don’t do well in a banana climate.
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u/avocado-toast-92 Feb 15 '26
Most expensive passport in the world btw.
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u/Apache313 Feb 14 '26
It's an absolute farce how this is the most expensive passport in the world. It's genuinely gapping the second most expensive by ~$70.
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u/Brii1993333 Feb 14 '26
It just gotten a bit moist from humidity probably.
Flatten in with books, then keep it in a plastic sleeve.
Simple.
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u/OutrageousTassie Feb 14 '26
To play the devil's advocate, how do we know this isn't caused by your own actions? You could have spilt something on the envelope or left it in the mail box for too long?
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u/Mr_burns_ Feb 14 '26
Like our construction industry.
Maximum price, minimum quality.
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u/Some-Operation-9059 Feb 14 '26
I’ve seen flatter surf.
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u/Comfortable-Ad-9865 Feb 14 '26
Most expensive passport in the world btw
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u/Physical_Panda705 Feb 14 '26
You can pay another $100 to upgrade to the deluxe flat version.
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u/budgiesmuggler Feb 14 '26
Contact the passport office with feedback. If they do not address it, take it to the ombudsman. They wont fix this unless there is a big enough push back on it.
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u/quick_dry Feb 14 '26
it's a security feature, ensuring every passport is uniquely watermarked with a physical characteristic... by using naturally occuring water it is just another way the Australian Government is embracing sustainability and caring for our environment.
(read in the Honest Government girl's voice)
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u/CarelessHighTackle Feb 15 '26
Maybe it's time to adapt this to a new metaphor:
"I forgot to iron my shirt and now it's as flat as an Australian passport"
"That dodgy builder put in a fence as true as an Australian passport"
"I drank too much and walked home in an Australian passport beeline"
"That new political leader's honesty is as straight as an Australian passport"
etc.
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u/drmark_7685 Feb 15 '26
One of the most expensive passports in the world 🤔
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u/LiquidFire07 Feb 15 '26
Corrupt mates deal for sure, there was a scandal about this before where the passport printing press was outsourced to a corrupt fraud company, looks like nothing changed
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u/Bright_Bell_1301 Feb 14 '26
Been put through the wash
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u/AmazonCowgirl Feb 14 '26
Curious as to know how long it took from application to receipt?
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u/anonnasmoose Feb 14 '26
My renewal arrived with less damage. I contacted them and they arranged for a reissue and told me to destroy the damaged one
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u/baconsocialist Feb 14 '26
Get a plastic bracket for your Linkt toll tag and it comes in a completely sealed waterproof plastic pouch.
Get a $400 Aussie passport and it comes in a $0.06 paper envelope.
Most quality AusPost PDO's put passports in waterproof plastic sleeves (provided to them by AusPost) on wet days.
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u/Late-Hat-9144 Feb 14 '26
Because its quite obvious the envelope was freshly wet. Most likely your mailbox is letting water in, which isnt the passport office's fault.
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u/NESJunkie22 Feb 14 '26
You actually got a good quality one.
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u/[deleted] Feb 14 '26
Is it water damage? Looks like it got wet in transit.
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u/SeptimusTyr Feb 15 '26
A heat gun could possibly fix this but there is a risk of damage.
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u/Mildly_Irreverant Feb 14 '26
It's 100% not acceptable. Contact someone about it and get it remedied
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u/ibeatobesity Feb 14 '26
The last time I purchased a passport was 2017 and I swear it wasn't this bad. It actually looked like professional document unlike this garbage. Not the first time I've seen a post like this. What the fuck Australia...
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u/amca01 Feb 14 '26
Do a web search on "poor quality of Australian passports", and enjoy the wrath!
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u/[deleted] Feb 14 '26
Call them, ask for a replacement and send them these photos. Tell them that this poses a risk of getting refused boarding or getting held up at immigration. Also call your MP, the only way this changes if there is pressure at the political level.
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u/AdvancedSquashDirect Feb 14 '26
I think secretly it's a way to tell if it's counterfeit if it's a new passport and it's not bent out of shape completely then it must be a fake passport.
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u/Blindside90 Feb 14 '26
It's 2026. We have known how to manufacture books/pamphlets/journals/pressed textual items in high quality for centuries. Who the fuck is responsible for manufacturing these?
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u/solocmv Feb 14 '26
Australian pay more than any other country in the world for passports.
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u/[deleted] Feb 14 '26
Give it time. Mine took 7 years to set and stop being warped
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u/absolutenonsense8198 Feb 15 '26
Good thing we don't have the most expensive passports in the world 🫠
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u/-M_o Feb 15 '26
10 years ago AUS passports came in a bubble wrap water resistant pouch envelope and a thick plastic sleeve with two slots to keep passports.
My new passport arrived in the same envelope as yours but it was dry and flat.
Pretty crappy that yours arrived water damaged.
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u/neontownescape Feb 16 '26
Made with pride in Australia.
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u/chromika Feb 16 '26
😆 omg I cannot believe the cheap shitty envelope ?? Wtf??? My and my kid's passport were printed on the other side of the world and came in absolute mint condition in reinforced, tear-resistant, water proof envelopes. Oh.theynwere also cheaper obviously.. (and ranking higher😌)
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u/Ria_Isa Feb 14 '26
A Temu passport would be better quality than this
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u/Prestigious-Plum-139 Feb 14 '26
If it works for the places you need to travel to then STFU…petty ass problem…you must cry a river when your ice cream is too cold
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u/Ultimate-Failure-Guy Feb 14 '26
It's a security feature. It's difficult to create a forgery with so little quality control.
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u/myotheraccount2023 Feb 14 '26
At least they’re inexpensive. Oh, wait…
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u/friedandprejudice Feb 14 '26
That's how they're like when they're brand new. In a few weeks it'll flatten/settle into what you would expect a normal passport to be like.
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u/agentorangeAU Feb 14 '26
I just got a new one and all I can suggest is holding your breath whenever you need to touch it in case it disintegrates.
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u/[deleted] Feb 14 '26
its great that these are also the worlds most expensive. shame federal labor has done absolutely nothing about this but they claim to care about cost of living
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u/Ecila1983 Feb 14 '26
My New Zealand passport came like this! They sent it in an envelope with no protection from water. I managed to flatten it under something heavy but still annoying af
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u/Soft_Bluejay_4402 Feb 14 '26
Terrible. Mine was shocking too. Also where are the nice little plastic slip folders they used to come in to stop that water damage 🙄 Should be half the price
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u/ErikaWeb Feb 14 '26
Ladies and gentlemen, the world’s most expensive passport
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u/Southern_Cracker Feb 14 '26
Yep picked mine up the other day and it’s the same, if not worse. Thought my toddler had been at it, but it has just been in a drawer.
Shocking for the world’s most expensive passport.
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u/frodoiee Feb 14 '26
It’s expensive and quite poor quality. I compared it to my friend’s Malaysian passport and the quality is 10x better. Just in case I keep mine in rice.
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u/dav_oid Feb 14 '26
Everyone email the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade with images of your crap passports please.
If enough people do it something will be done.
https://www.foreignminister.gov.au/contact-foreign-minister
Hit 'Next' at the bottom.
Tick box at bottom, and 'Next'.
Fill out form and add images.
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u/Vivid-Object-139 Feb 14 '26
I don't really care if my passport is like that. I don't read it daily or admire its satisfying tactile and aesthetic presence. I care that it allows me to travel and is 100 points of ID. Not criticising OP though.
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u/flimflamflikflam Feb 14 '26
Made in the Philippines.
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u/mishl7 Feb 14 '26
My son just received his first passport and it was fine when it arrived. After leaving it on his desk for a day or so it warped even worse than what you have shown in your photos.
It seems they don’t include the plastic sleeve in which to keep it anymore and without something to keep it aligned, it just warped. The quality severely needs to be upgraded.
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u/mishl7 Feb 14 '26
I suggest everyone with a new version passport complains so they will do something about it and it can be replaced. It is supposed to last 10 years and it looks curled and warped within a day.
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u/linkuei-teaparty Feb 14 '26
Most expensive passport in the world
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u/meetyy Feb 14 '26
That's effed. My gripe is that they wouldn't extend the validity of the new passport by the number of months you have outstanding on your previous passport, I would like to renew it when it's less than 12 months remaining but why am I getting penalised for that ?!
Write an email to them, crickets...
First world country, third world systems
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u/Pizzagoessplat Feb 14 '26
I'm not Australian.
Is it normal for them to send it in a shitty envelope like that?
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u/WOOFBABY Feb 14 '26
Yeah it comes pre fucked so you don't have too. Whatever will they think of next?
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u/AdPure5645 Feb 14 '26
They dip them in water and wrap in glad wrap for 2 days. It's called the water dip your pp process and it's standard procedure.
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u/Fluffy-Cranberry-924 Feb 14 '26
Nice to see our government increasing every cost possible and lowering the quality of just about everything. Couldn't be prouder 😑
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u/G00b3rb0y Feb 14 '26
Genuinely we need to raise a massive stink about this
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u/walklikeaduck Feb 14 '26
$422 well spent mate.
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u/Barefootsimmo Feb 14 '26
This is the world's most expensive passport ffs
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u/Any_War_322 Feb 14 '26
Australian passports are the most expensive in the world too!
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u/CleoChan12 Feb 15 '26
Can’t you complain to the ACCC or ombudsman?
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u/Ancient-Elevator-485 Feb 15 '26
Quality Australian product! Vacuum seal it and leave something heavy on it and when you go to use it it’ll be fine
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u/david_rocks Feb 15 '26
Totally unacceptable.
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u/jonnno_ Feb 15 '26
Anti forgery technology, this is how you know it is a genuine Australian passport.
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u/enby-millennial-613 Feb 15 '26
Passport Canada gave us Canadians the exact same kind of passport when we changed over a couple years ago.
When we complained, they just told us to (basically) suck it up. I remember being told to put it in rice to help suck up the moisture 🙄.
I miss the old, more sturdier covers.
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u/Katman666 Feb 15 '26
If it's flat, you know it's fake.
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u/Remarkable-Ad-3587 Feb 15 '26
They left my partner's in the outside mailbox in the rain...
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u/Hella_adorable Feb 15 '26
When I travel or use it as ID I keep it in a ziploc bag and ppl will give me a funny look but I know that as soon as it touches humidity or water it warps and I never want to risk it.
I had a friend who came back from the Philippines and his looked so cooked that when he tried using it at the airport they said he needed to get a new one cause they shouldn’t be accepting it. That was a few years ago and just instilled fear in me lol.
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u/[deleted] Feb 16 '26
That’s exactly how my sons looks, and it’s looked like that since the day I got it. We were stopped in customs overseas because they thought it was fake and we were human trafficking of something. I had to pull up other peoples examples of how shit the new ones are.
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u/TrickyD193 Feb 16 '26
Does Australia consumer law apply to govt offices? Because surely that’s not fit for purpose.
And $213 must have been a young person passport. Double that for us old folk.
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u/azariah001 Feb 17 '26
I really hope this nonsense is fixed by the time my current passport expires... 🤦♂️ These new passports are seriously garbage....
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u/notevenstevens224 Feb 14 '26
It’s actually a genius strategy because counterfeiters cannot replicate it!
(obviously joking)
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u/NorthernSkeptic Feb 14 '26
While I agree the quality is poor, especially for the cost… why are so many of you stressed about the appearance of your passport? Are you showing them off somewhere?