Key Points
- The Australian Passport Office is rolling out the new R series passport.
- It contains additional security features and images of Australian landscapes.
- P series and N series passports remain valid travel documents and can be used until they expire.
Australia's new passports are making people smile - but not in their photographs.
The Australian Passport Office has started rolling out its new R series passport, which features images of some of the country's most popular landscapes and native species, and incorporates work by Indigenous artists.
The new passports also feature advanced security features designed to prevent counterfeiting and identity theft.
The front and back cover pages represent the coasts, while the visa pages are designed to take the owner on a visual journey across Australia through images of 17 Australian landscapes.
The landscapes double as a security detail, with the sky in each image turning into a nightscape under ultraviolet light and featuring a hidden species of native fauna.
In a first for Australian passports, the photo page is made from "tough, high security, layered plastic," according to the Australian Passport Office.
The plastic, also known as polycarbonate, is laser-engraved rather than printed with ink, and photos will appear in black and white rather than colour.
On the security features page, a wattle design also changes colour at different angles, while in ultraviolet light, blue elements on the photo page turn red, and a red and white wattle appears on the inside front cover.
The Australian passport has been updated to include additional security features along with images of Australian landscapes and native species. Source: Supplied / Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Why does Australia have a new passport, and can I still use my old one?
The Australian passport is regularly upgraded to protect passport holders’ identity and personal information, and the R series has been planned since 2015.
If you have a P series or N series passport, you can continue to use it until it expires.
Anybody who has applied for a new passport since early 2023 will receive the R series.
The fees and process of applying for a passport is expected to remain the same and the Australian Passport Office says the transition is not expected to cause delays to passport processing.
