A British passport renewal from New Zealand may seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. As with most things these days, you can renew your British passport online from the comfort of your temporary accommodation, hostel, or friends house in New Zealand.
This 8 step guide details how to renew a british passport from New Zealand, covering the important aspects such as the cost of a UK passport in New Zealand, the processing time, and other important aspects to your UK passport renewal from overseas.
I have included my own personal experience (Ben renewed his passport) which highlights the anxiety of sending your best form of ID to the other side of the world and my own timeline of events in detail (which will be different for everyone).
We have broken down the overseas passport renewal steps into 8 manageable chunks.
- Get passport photo
- Fill out the form online
- Post old passport to the UK
- Wait
- Receive updates from the Passport Office
- Delivery details from DHL
- Track your package
- Sign your new passport
We have included all the necessary links that you will need throughout this article.
WHY IS RENEWING A BRITISH PASSPORT FROM NEW ZEALAND RELEVANT?
As a traveller, it would be impossible to do what we love doing without a passport.
Try booking a flight without one.
If you’re anything like us and are allowing your travels to take its own course and don’t have plans set in stone, then learning how to renew your British passport New Zealand will be useful.
We planned to leave New Zealand after six months of being in the country. However, these plans changed as we saw more of this beautiful place. But we had the issue that Ben’s passport expired within 12 months. New Zealand requires you to have a minimum of six months left on your passport before you enter the country, which is worth knowing before you travel.
So we decided, with our plans constantly changing, that it was best to renew his British passport from overseas.
The information in this article is from a travelling UK citizen who has successfully completed the process of British passport renewal from New Zealand.
I can relate to all the feelings of anxiety and stress that are involved in sending such an important document so far away. We hope that this post helps quell any anxiety you may have about the process!
This article guides you through the process of renewing a British passport from New Zealand step by step. We have broken it down into 8 steps. These range from obtaining a suitable passport photo to the reassuring communication from the Passport Office once everything has been done.
After that information, and assuming a successful passport delivery, I touch on the importance of notifying the New Zealand Immigration Office of your change in passport too. You will have a new passport number and the old one will still be on your New Zealand visa documents.
Another helpful topic covered here briefly is the other forms of identification you can use in New Zealand.
We have included all of the links you need to go to in this article.
Check out our Instagram @jessandbentravel for more pictures and stories of what we’ve been up to in New Zealand!
8 Steps on How to Renew Your British Passport from New Zealand
Step 1: Get A Passport Photo
This can be done digitally or in a passport booth– the old-fashioned way!
This is the first step on the government website, and it doesn’t really let you go much further without a picture.
We tried to do one ourselves using Jess’ camera, but we couldn’t quite get the lighting right.
When you upload a picture online, it gives you an estimate as to whether the picture will be approved or not. All our pictures did not pass sadly. So, we just went to a pharmacy where they did passport pictures. This cost $20, but the online checker approved my picture. It’s important to get this one right first time.
Step 2: Fill Out The Form
If you haven’t already found it, you can find the link for overseas British passport applications here.
As I was renewing a passport, it was much easier. I can’t comment too much on the process for lost or stolen sadly.
Also, I assume you need to renew your passport if:
a) you are reading this and
b) you’re already abroad… How else did you get to New Zealand??
The application for a passport costs £94 plus £19.86 for a courier fee. Totalling £113.86 ($223.50 converted to NZD, at the current exchange rate in July 2023), which you will have to pay at the end of this form filling out.
I discuss all of the communication I received from HM Passport Office during this time further down in this article, but this will be the first of a few emails.
When you send your application, they email you a few days later to say that they have received it. Here they will assign you an application reference number.
They also remind you to send your old passport back, which they do a few times.
Step 3: Post Your Passport To The UK
Next step is to actually post your passport back to the UK. The Passport Office give you the address a few times so don’t worry about finding it.
I went to a local post office and the really kind lady helped me a lot by telling me what the details were needed and where I needed to sign etc.
This cost me $107 as it was tracked delivery because of the sensitive nature of the package. The lady helping me made a very good point by saying that if someone else got hold of this package, then my identity can be used. Pretty scary.
This step is important because the Passport Office won’t start looking at your application until they have your old passport.
As soon as I had done my application, I went into town at the next opportunity to get my passport sent.
Step 4: Wait In A Foreign Country With No Passport And Hope It Arrives To The UK Passport Office
Step 5: Receive Updates From the Passport Office
HMRC will keep you thoroughly updated from hereon, including:
- An email when they have received your old passport. Which I must admit, I sighed a small sigh of relief when that email came through.
- An email to say whether your passport application has been approved or not- hence why it’s important to try and get everything right. It’s just easier.
- If it doesn’t get approved, they will communicate the issue and try to rectify it. For example, if your photo isn’t the quality they require, they will provide you with the necessary steps for improvement.
- An email to say when your new passport has been printed.
- An update telling you to sign your passport with a black ballpoint pen when it arrives.
Step 6: Delivery Details From DHL
My next communication about my passport was from DHL, which at the time of writing this in 2023, is the trusted delivery partner of the HM Passport Office. They emailed to say that they had my passport and issued me my tracking number.
Step 7: Track Your Package With DHL
Check your tracking number on the DHL website to stay up to date with where you new passport is in the world.
Step 8: Sign Your New Passport
When your new passport arrives (usually by signed delivery), use a black ballpoint pen to sign it.
How Much Does it Cost to Renew a British Passport from New Zealand?
The total cost of a UK passport in New Zealand was $351.48 or £161.81 (at the time of exchange rate in July 2023).
Costs involved:
- Passport application – £113.86 (this includes the application and courier costs for the return flight)
- Passport photo – $20
- Delivery fees – $107.98 (to send my passport back to the UK)
As you can see, I paid for my passport application using my British credit card, which is in GBP. The passport photo and delivery fees were paid in NZD as these were services carried out by New Zealand businesses. Therefore, my total cost was split over two currencies. Totally your choice how you pay for things. We have worked in one currency, NZD, for ease of reading.
My Personal Timeline of Events
If you are interested in my personal timeline of events for renewing my British passport from New Zealand, then I have written it down complete with dates below.
From start to finish (being me obtaining a passport photo to receiving my new passport) was four weeks and two days. From the 29th of May to the 28th of June 2023.
This is not fixed by any means and will be different for everyone depending on many external circumstances. But as a guide and an insight into my own experience, I have broken down the steps with the dates in which they occurred.
These dates and timeline will vary for your own personal experience.
My passport photo was taken and initially emailed to me by the pharmacy on the 29th May 2023. However, my first photo was not accepted by the online checker. I went back two days later to explain to the pharmacy why it was not acceptable, and they helped me out free of charge.
As soon as I had an acceptable photo (according to the online checker) I sent my application online and paid for it on the 31st May. The Passport Office emailed on the 3rd of June to say they had received my application.
At this point, when they recieve your application, you need to send your old passport back. They include the address here too.
I sent my passport on the 5th June, which was received by the Passport Office on the 14th June. The estimated delivery was 5-10 working days, and it was within that window.
Following that, I had email confirming that my application had been approved on the 19th June and that my passport was printed on the 20th June.
The next communication from the Passport Office was on the 22nd June reminding me to sign my passport when it arrived.
On the 24th June I received an email from DHL – which was the first email from them- with my tracking number and expected delivery date which was the 3rd July.
Despite this expected delivery date, my passport ARRIVED on the 28th June.
I signed my new passport immediately and notified the NZ Immigration Office so that my Working Holiday Visa was still valid.
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Read MoreOther Important Information for when you Renew Your British Passport in New Zealand
Update Your Visa Details with NZ Immigration Office
I have included this separately as it is not strictly to do with the renewal process of your passport, however it is absolutely vital because you will now have a new passport number.
Go to the New Zealand Immigration website.
You will have to fill out a form and upload pictures of your new passport and old passport, as well as fill out basic details about yourself to confirm your identity.
It’s quite easy, and there are no additional costs.
Other Forms of ID in New Zealand
With my passport being literally the other side of the world, it would be a fair assumption that I had no form of acceptable ID in New Zealand. For example, to buy alcohol in this country you need to present acceptable forms of ID. A UK drivers license is not valid in New Zealand.
There are four acceptable forms of ID in New Zealand:
- A valid passport
- A New Zealand Drivers license
- A Kiwi Access Card
- An 18+ card
Without my passport, it seems like I wouldn’t have any ID. However, it is really easy to get a New Zealand Drivers License if you already have a full UK Drivers License.
Get that sorted by popping down to a local AA, filling out the paperwork, and it’ll be sent to you within three weeks. In the meantime, you’ll have temporary paper licence. It is really easy, much simpler than renewing a passport.
We would definitely recommend getting this done before you send your passport back to the UK and are without it for a while, due to the laws around ID in New Zealand.
Useful Websites for Renewing your British Passport from New Zealand
I have included all of these links throughout this article, but just in case you missed one or wanted them all in one place…
And thats a wrap! If you found this article useful, share it on Instagram to help all of your traveller friends and tag us! We’d love to help as many people as possible with this valuable information.
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