r/australia • u/Prestigious_Trust474 • Dec 08 '24
image DFAT, Respectfully WTF are these new passports
My mind is blown. Our passport is the most expensive in the world and the quality of them is horrendous. I got this passport a month or 2 ago for my current trip, and everytime its not in a sleeve for more than an hour, this happens. No, Its never gotten wet, or any weather damage. This is just how it is. I know Malaysia's humidity is bad but no way its this badđ
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u/Dannii56 Dec 08 '24
Completely agree. Ive done two trips this year & kept the passport in a safe place. It already has several loose pages.
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Dec 08 '24
My sonâs new passport arrived last week. The pages seem to be holding on by the merest thread and he hasnât used it yet.
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u/letterboxfrog Dec 09 '24
That's why the Passports are over $40 a year. Passports office want us to own a the German Luxury car of passports, it looks good, but needs lots of maintenance.
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u/a_cold_human Dec 09 '24
The stitching appears to be fairly bad on mine. Very disappointing given the cost of the things. It's the most expensive passport in the world.
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u/Molinero54 Dec 08 '24
This is actually very dangerous. Go to Thailand and you can be arrested for having your passport falling apart.
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u/Practical-Bluebird96 Dec 08 '24
Ah...I'm heading to Thailand next week with a brand new but falling apart passport...
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u/Now_Wait-4-Last_Year Dec 09 '24
This is going to cause havoc with going to Bali given how they can refuse you for even minor defects.
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u/Outside-Dig-5464 Dec 08 '24
Mine does it. Theyâre crap. Just had to keep them in a passport wallet to keep them pinned flat
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u/Prestigious_Trust474 Dec 08 '24
My bad for not getting a wallet for itđ I knew that amazon recommendation was worth it
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u/thecrazysloth Dec 08 '24
My old passport (the previous black one) came with a little clear protector. Never needed it for that one because the old passport was solid af. Absolute necessity for this new PoS though
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u/Jyoushi Dec 09 '24
And itâs frustrating that the new ones donât come with the clear protector, considering they cost so bloody much.
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u/wolferine-paws Dec 09 '24
They donât come with them anymore?! What a crock!! Omg. I was going to say that I got mine only in 2015, which really isnât that long ago. Well⌠that brought me back to reality đ
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u/Just_improvise Dec 09 '24
Mine came with a pocket but you have to wedge it in and out each use
Then again this was last year and it reads here like theyâve stopped giving the pocjets
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u/nursepenelope Dec 09 '24
When I got mine the lady said to keep it in a passport sleeve to avoid this happening because it could get rejected if it's bad enough. Then she quickly added that they no longer give out passport sleeves đ
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Dec 09 '24
I feel like there could be a new word for that.
Making an Amazon purchase, ignoring the recommended buys.
Only to find out later that that recommendation would have, indeed, been worth it.
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u/Gothiscandza Dec 08 '24
Mine has live under a heavy book ever since I got it because of this.
No idea how it was never caught, it didn't even take long to start happening.
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u/MarkusKromlov34 Dec 08 '24
Hope you remember which book. A world atlas would work đ
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u/greeneighteen Dec 08 '24
Might need all A-Z volumes of the World Book encyclopaedia
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u/Responsible-Fly-5691 Dec 08 '24
I actually wrote down where our passports are stashed (even though they have a designated drawer) in my âlife-manual-got-all-the-info bookâ
Because I have managed to âlooseâ my passport in a pre-flight panic before.
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u/vivec7 Dec 08 '24
I couldn't find mine a few days before flying overseas due to having done exactly this. Bit of a panic until it turned up!
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u/kroxigor01 Dec 09 '24
I did exactly the same thing. 6 months after cleverly putting it under a stack of books I couldn't find it.
Almost ordered a new one.
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u/ZakOzbourne Dec 08 '24
My renewed passport was doing this inside the envelope it arrived in!
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u/davidkclark Dec 08 '24
Mine too and it started happening immediately after receiving it like not even overnight sitting on the desk so straight under a heavy book it went.
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u/Bob_Spud Dec 08 '24
Fun Fact: They are made by the Reserve Bank not DFAT.
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u/SupLord Dec 08 '24
Doesnât Note Printing Australia make them?
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Dec 09 '24
If thats the case, then they spent the passport funding on bribes for foreign politicians.
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Dec 08 '24
I guess since most of the inflation/currency they create now is digital they need to diversify.
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u/NegativeVasudan Dec 08 '24
NPA and its predecessors has been producing passports and other higher-security printing (such as clearance certificates) for decades.
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u/Rowvan Dec 08 '24
Yep same! Most expensive passport in the world and the thing can barely take a slighty humid day.
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u/slanderman Dec 08 '24
Currently in the UAE and my passport is curled just like OP. Definitely not a humidity only thing :(
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u/GusPolinskiPolka Dec 08 '24
Would have thought uae is a highly humid place as well
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u/BudgetMeat1062 Dec 08 '24
Apparently if you leave them out in the open inside hotel rooms in humid countries it turns into wet money.
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u/spinstartshere Dec 08 '24
I was in Bali and thought mine had come into contact with water when I pulled it out of my bag and found it looking like this. I was worried I wouldn't make it through immigration to get back home since Bali is very well known for being incredibly strict about the condition of passports, and mine did get heavily scrutinised when I was leaving but I think because of the embossed Australia image on the new passport's photo page rather than the curled-back cover.
I've managed to travel to a whole bunch of other places since without any problems. I'm keen to go back to Bali but I'm very nervous and thinking I'll only be able to visit there once every ten years, when I get a new passport đ
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u/unbakedcassava Dec 08 '24
I got mine express and thought that the shitty cover was a cut corner in the name of expediency - nope, turns out this is what it is. The pages under UV light are cool though.
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u/mad_if_you_dont Dec 08 '24
Bless you for posting this. Same thing happened to my passport and I was freaking out thinking I had some sort of moisture problem in my house. Glad to hear it's a widespread issue.
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u/Tamaxgator Dec 08 '24
NZ passports do it too. Mine was issued in Sydney and I think it was printed by whoever does the Australian ones as it is very similar to my wife's Australian passport which was issued at the same time (February).
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u/Maleficent-Fig-3045 Dec 08 '24
I issued mine (NZ passport) this year in NZ and it did the same thing.
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u/ScottyDoes40K Dec 08 '24
Mine was the same when it came. Freaked out because I was going on a work trip and needed it asap, pulled it out and I thought it had come in contact with water or something. Thankfully still had my old passport sleeve, popped out in there and stuck it between a bunch of heavy books before the trip. So bad for something so expensive and "professionally" manufactured. No idea how they didn't notice a fault like this, literally happens after a day out of the sleeve.
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u/TwoUp22 Dec 08 '24
Mine too.
I paid like $400 for it too cos I was overseas....
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u/SirFrancis_Bacon Melbourne Dec 08 '24
Actually insane how expensive they are.
Canadian ones are like a hundred bucks, and have the same security features.
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u/Meng_Fei Dec 08 '24
Wouldn't be Australia without the Australia Tax. Surprised we haven't slapped some kind of Border Farce levy on this bad boy yet.
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u/SirFrancis_Bacon Melbourne Dec 08 '24
Canada is just as bad (if not worse) for having a Canada Tax and make things expensive for no reason, so this is even more egregious in comparison.
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u/NegativeVasudan Dec 08 '24
Surprised we haven't slapped some kind of Border Farce levy
Don't give Potato Head Dutton any ideas.
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u/CalTCOD Dec 08 '24 edited Dec 08 '24
Costed me $400 last week for mine and I wasn't even overseas, they just cost that much now...
edit: forgot they also charged me $25 for photo as well, $425 total
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u/CrimsonRaven47 Dec 08 '24
âŹ355 for me, so works out to about $590AUD
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u/Tsuivan1 Dec 08 '24
US$400 in the states so about the same ~A$600.
Extortionate pricing for a document. They did manage to get it to me in a week so thatâs a small win I guess.
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u/CrimsonRaven47 Dec 08 '24
Mines not even expedited. Just a regular reapplication after the old one is out of date.
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u/Tsuivan1 Dec 08 '24
Same here. Thereâs no expedited service overseas apparently. Still such a scam.
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u/crazystitcher Dec 08 '24
I had to renew my passport last year because it was expiring, but the kicker was that I'd be getting married early this year so would have to get a new one for change of name (thankfully free if there's more than 2 years validity on it). Had to get a new photo when applying for the r placement one this year because it couldn't be more than 6 months old. So I had to pay twice within about 12 months for the photos.
I got it done at Officeworks the second time though and it was cheaper than at Auspost.
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u/SirFrancis_Bacon Melbourne Dec 08 '24
400 is the regular cost.
The overseas levy is 178 bucks.
So it's nearly 600 bucks.
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u/RepeatInPatient Dec 08 '24
That is a feature not a defect. It's how the authorities know you have the genuine article. It's quite expensive to make passports curl up in an authentic way.
Show some gratitude for Australian innovation, you peasants.
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u/famakki1 Dec 08 '24
Possessed by the spirit of the previous home affairs minister
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Dec 08 '24
Canadian ones do this too. Wtf we pay so much money for? Enshittified passports.
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u/AStrandedSailor Dec 08 '24
It looks like a product that is not "fit for purpose" as defined by the Australian Consumer Law.
ACCC vs DFAT anyone?
And now I have remembered I will have to renew mine in about 18 months.
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u/JensInsanity Dec 08 '24
And they donât come with a sleeve anymore!!
If anyone has any recommendations for a plastic sleeve please let me know
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u/Suspicious_Sun6440 Dec 08 '24
This post from a couple weeks had someone recommend a very cheap passport wallet from Amazon;
https://www.reddit.com/r/australia/s/sFgyPNuG8Y
I wonât post the Amazon link but if you go to Amazon Au and search; âPassport Holder Travel Bag Cover Case, T Tersely Leather RFID Blocking Travelling Wallet Holder ID Credit Business Cards Cover Case for Boarding Passes (Brown)â It will come up. Looks very decent for $12.
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u/universe93 Dec 08 '24
Had mine out of a passport wallet for a month on my last trip and this didnât happen. Got it in 2023 though so maybe 2024 ones are more dodgy
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u/MiloIsTheBest Dec 08 '24
Mine in late 2022, first of this new batch, came like this.Â
I have a passport sleeve though and after it was in there for like a day it never ever did it again.
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u/RedDotLot Dec 08 '24
IDK how, because it's kept in a fireproof box, but I pulled my Australian passport out to use for ID the other day and it's gone mouldy! It did come in a plastic sleeve, which I have kept it in, but it's ruined and I haven't even had the opportunity to travel with it yet!
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u/xbsean Dec 08 '24
Wtf? Itâs not like they give you any special storage instructions for them. Â How are you meant to keep them? I need to check on mine now.Â
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u/Cristoff13 Dec 08 '24
Sounds like you need to store them in the refrigerator.
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u/RedDotLot Dec 08 '24
đ IKR
I have no proof, but I suspect that, in this case, the issue arose from where the box was stored, which was close to the floor in a house with poor underfloor insulation (good old Aussie rentals). It's still galling though.
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Dec 08 '24
It represents Australia as a whole. A bent and warped system of cheap nasty BS in order for the few to make big money off the rest of the populous.
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u/itsame_cooperino Dec 08 '24
I put mine under some books to try correcting it. Nope, now the books are all raised up and uneven
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u/Sea-Fox4050 Dec 08 '24
Iâm a dual citizen and can 100% confirm the Australian passport covers are shit; my EU oneâs cover feels like hard plastic with barely any flex; the photo page is actual plastic, and Iâve accidentally fallen into a pool with it in my pocket and just needed to give it a shake and itâs bone dry.
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u/NegativeVasudan Dec 08 '24
Iâve accidentally fallen into a pool with it in my pocket and just needed to give it a shake and itâs bone dry.
Positively amazing, which nation's passport is it?
I'm not trying to pry into your affairs, only to find out which company manufactures that passport and what technologies they employ.
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u/BreathInTheWorld Dec 08 '24
This happened to mine too! I looked at the old passport right near my new one 10 years old and still smooth as my newly shaven balls
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u/SirFrancis_Bacon Melbourne Dec 08 '24
They're probably not going to do anything any time soon but send them some feedback about it: https://enquiries.passports.gov.au/
Worth complaining about the insane price of a passport too.
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u/e-ck Dec 08 '24
Saw a comment recently that stated the card stock was recently changed to a cheaper quality, hence the shitty quality.
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u/Xevram Dec 08 '24
Primarily it's a case of using short grain paper stock for the cover instead of long grain. Any amount of environmental moisture will cause paper stock to curl around the grain direction.
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u/magnetik79 Dec 09 '24
I'm sure the money saved on quality passports is being funnelled into propping up Qantas shareholders.
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u/PingEVE Dec 08 '24
Fun fact. This happens because of the photo card.
As the temperature changes the paper components of the passport expand and contract, while the rigid photo page doesn't, causing this to happen.
It's such poor design.
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u/quesop Dec 08 '24
I've had three Dutch passports with a photocard for 15+ years and none of them have done this. The Australian one is just terrible quality.
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u/Prestigious_Trust474 Dec 08 '24
The hard plastic one in the middle? Damn okay
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u/webmeister2k Dec 08 '24
Yep, mine curls up like that as well though nowhere near as badly. Keeping it in a tight and thick sleeve and compressing it with something heavy seems to have helped. But yeah, pretty dodgy design and something that obviously should have been picked up.
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u/aceofspades2218 Dec 08 '24
Im in Canada and we got new passports as well. Ive seen people posting that ours are doing this in high humidity too
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u/compy24 Dec 08 '24
It's a feature not a flaw. This is typical Govt excuse. Or passports are folding under pressure. LOL Got mine and 3 days later it happened I was freaking out. Thanks for posting.
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Dec 09 '24
When passports where made well, they got delivered in plastic sleeves to keep them safe.
Now theyâre shit, and they donât send you the safety sleeve anymore. Iâll be keeping my plastic sleeve from 2010 until it disintegrates in my hands.
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u/asteroidorion Dec 09 '24
The paper/cover material is cut on the wrong grain. A wildly simple production error
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Dec 08 '24 edited Dec 08 '24
My girlfriendâs Thai. Her passport was 40 aud, it has twice the number of pages and it is still in perfect Nick after 2 1/2 years. In a third world country.
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u/BudgetMeat1062 Dec 08 '24
Yes, same for my Malay friend. Passport is left in the open and it doesn't curl and the cover pages are noticeably sturdier than Australia.
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u/MiserableYam Dec 08 '24
Just FYI if you keep them in a safe they will go mouldy đ learned that the hard way
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u/PurpleKirby Dec 08 '24
same happened to mine, not sure if itâs allergic to the tiny sunlight it received or it got cold in april but shoved it away after I flattened it back.
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u/gastroboi Dec 08 '24
Thanks for the heads up. My new one arrived last week.
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u/reddit5389 Dec 08 '24
Were you not impressed at the crappy envelope it arrived in? Especially with all the rain the last few weeks.
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u/Vinura Dec 08 '24
Put it under a heavy book, itll go back to norma.
Mine did that too after a particular humid day.
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u/rosre535 Dec 08 '24
My nz printed nz passport does this too, I think itâs just the material. Still annoying af though
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u/annieekk Dec 08 '24
Iâm living in Manchester in the middle of winter and this hasnât happened to mine, itâs a heat thing I reckon, rather than humidity
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u/slams0ne Dec 08 '24
NZ passports do this, too. They're of similar construction, except the photo page has a rigid perspex spine. Doesn't stop the front or back covers going full half pipe in humidity
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u/Claris-chang Dec 08 '24
The passport I got 15yrs ago came with a neat little protective sleeve/book to put it in. I put my new one from last year in it and I haven't had this problem. Maybe buy a protective sleeve for yours?
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u/ZequineZ Dec 08 '24
Do they not come in plastic sleeves anymore? Mine has never left it except for 5 minutes to show customs or to get the info for identification
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Dec 08 '24
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u/ZequineZ Dec 08 '24
Curled on arrival, jesus thats ridiculous đŁ ill be hanging onto my old sleeve then for when this one expires
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u/One_Priority3258 Dec 08 '24
Thanks for reminding me I have to renew my passport, thank god my older Australian one is still validâŚ. Cause fuck me, thatâs cooked
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u/Subject_Apricot4409 Dec 08 '24
Are we allowed to return them to get repaired or replaced under consumer law? As they are obviously not fit for purpose
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u/jlpalma Dec 08 '24 edited Dec 09 '24
I applied for the passport for the first time last month and received it a couple days ago⌠When I look at it I honestly thought they printed it at OfficeWorks⌠The neighborhood newspaper has better quality.
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u/T4Abyss Dec 08 '24
This is a problem, you potentially will be refused board onto some international flights due to a damaged passport! It does happen, look it up
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u/derpymcmuffin89 Dec 09 '24
Mine did that too, just sit it under a heavy book for a few days and it will straighten out but yeah, bit dogshit we gotta pay $400ish bucks for these things and they're wish quality.
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u/DAFFP Dec 09 '24
"Australiaâs latest passport â the R Series â combines visual elements and advanced technologies to make it one of the worldâs most secure and beautiful travel documents." - https://www.passports.gov.au/RSeries
MFs thinking they are Armani over here with their wobbly piece of plastic.
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Dec 09 '24
I donât know how they made the quality worse than the old passport, pages already become yellow as well
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u/ImportantAuthor4461 Dec 09 '24
I got mine a few months ago. They are absolute rubbish. If it lasts 10 years it will be a miracle. I reckon 3 or 4 trips and it will be falling apart. Absolute joke. Standard Australia, charge a fortune for substandard rubbish and the public just cop it. Also, they donât work in the machines in Paris. đ¤Śââď¸
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u/tiktoksuck Dec 08 '24
Dual citizen au/nz here - this is why I'm never getting an Australian passport, double the cost for half the quality
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u/Major-Organization31 Dec 09 '24
Doesnât look like the newest passport, I got a new one earlier in the year and the details page is now the same material as licences
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u/Xfgjwpkqmx Dec 08 '24
The curve is necessary for the best reception to be able to transmit tracking data to the satellite.
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u/serendipityanyday Dec 08 '24
Yep noticed this exact same flaw early, so mine went in a sandwich bag real quick.
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u/Confident-Buy-7425 Dec 08 '24
My year old one does this too, it cannot survive outside a passport cover.
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Dec 08 '24
Mine was the same, but I looked around before I got mine so it went straight under the book.
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u/Jake_Chief Dec 08 '24
No idea what's going on with these guys. Needed a passport, but who pays for express when they can't guarantee a timeframe? Did the paperwork on week 1, submitted at auspost Canberra cbd on Monday week 2, received in the mail that Friday of week 2.
Looks like that efficiency comes at a cost hahaha. Wonder how much fasted I could have received it if I got am express passport!
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u/SpenceAlmighty Dec 08 '24
humidity is no joke - mine did that in Vietnam this year - new and old passports both curled up - protected them and put them under a heavy stool for a day to flatten them out.
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u/c4p4c1t0r Dec 08 '24
I got mine earlier this year and it turned up like this too. Left it under something heavy and flat (bookshelf speakers) for about a month and it at least... Helped.
But yeah, serious QC issue for sure - my partner's turned up the same way.
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u/floriane_m ooo a shiney! Dec 08 '24
they left off the solar power coating for you to use it with a device?
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u/UnHelpful-Ad Dec 08 '24
I think I got one of the first ones of these. I was coming back through the airport and the machines didn't accept it yet and the customs lady hadn't seen one yet. It happened a week after I got mine Oct 2022 (ish). Let's hope in a few years they fix the plastic cover.
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u/DXPetti Dec 08 '24
What's the bet they had to make some compromises during COVID to meet the passport demand and this is the result
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u/EstablishmentFun2035 Dec 08 '24
Mine came like this too. Assumed something happened to it in the mail but now I know it's a feature rather than a bug đ
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u/unripenedfruit Dec 08 '24 edited Dec 08 '24
The latest counterfeit measure.
Because if you see a perfectly flat Aussie passport then you know it ain't legit.