BEVS

Erm Getting the UK passport over the NZ post shop counter is definitely not easy as has been noted in posts elsewhere.

In fact, renewing a UK passport from here has never been easy, cheap or quick to be fair.

I would support JAJ in his post. Overseas travel is hugely expensive.

I really do feel that mithering over the cost of the passports and timelines is ineffective.

That is why I put up the costs of the NZ citizenship application which is in additon to the cost and time to apply for an NZ passport.


. Perhaps I should also have put up the costs and the timeline to get the NZ passports

I'm surprised actually Genesis. You recently had the highly expensive bach holiday which was not good and now are not sure which way to go over passports.

I am the greatest of ditherers but sometimes you just have to bite the bullet. After all you do shout loud and hard about belonging to NZ.

Robbo25

All that with three under tens.....best start saving for the counselling that you are all bound to need when you get back!

Andrew Cross

I just had to get my sons passport renewed at the post shop. I had everything i needed and checked it twice !! A young teenage boy served me, it was the first British Passport to be done there so I was a guinea pig of sorts. After 40 minutes I was getting a little fed up I ended up using my mobile to ring the Uk number to ask them to tell the young man that I didnt need my passport to prove I was his mother as my birth certificate would suffice... Did it in the end, hope its easier for the next Brit to go in and get it done.

Genesis

Its nothing to do with 'which way to go' its what is the easiest thing to do just now (as life is a tad tricky at present for a number of reasons) and what's the most cost effective. Sue has rightly pointed out that the kiwi passport is pretty much the same cost of a Uk one given that the UK one lasts twice as long as the NZ one.

Not sure where the crap hol. home in Raumati comes into all this however. I will be a citizen of NZ one day (probably) but maybe not just yet. We have 2 current GB p/ports and so may aswell just renew the 3 old ones and do all the citizenship next year. There is no hurry for the latter and it will really only benefit the kids long term as we are unlikely to ever seek abode in Oz. And regarding costs IF either passport was cheaper by 50% and I needed 5 of them I would go for which ever was the cheapest.

Genesis

Very, very, very good point!! Could do with some industrial counselling right now actually!!

pixi-dust

Just to answer the question about how long does it take to get the NZ passport. Ten days from sending in application to getting it delivered back to us. Pretty fast I thought. That was just the bog standard service.
We were over in melbourne for a long weekend and did all our passport control stuff via the new chip thingy in the passport. You slot it into a machine. It takes about 30 seconds with no queuing at all. It was brilliant and saved so much time at the airport, it cancelled out most of the boring standing around and shuffling.
Also the new NZ passports are very pretty with the silver fern running up the side.

simonsi

Errr well there are some horror stories floating about talking about long waiting times and the difficulties of using the premium rate "help"line so while in theory it might be easy to apply it might be a little more challenging actually getting the passports Hopefully it will get better as the process beds-in...

danjones1

The only reason to get the passport is to be able to move to Australia. Quite ironic really!

pricklykina

i haven't got citizenship but when I plan to become a politician I'll need it ( or if i want to represent nz at sport)

It is on my plan to get citizenship but it is the money that stops me..I don't have 600 spare dollars. I don't go overseas so I can't balance the cost against that..even my uk passport has expired.

It think that I have said this on other thread that i'm insulted to think that people believe that I am less attached to the country because I am not a citizen.

I work hard in and for this country and for it's population in my own small way.
A piece of paper will not change my relationship with NZ..or with the UK...apart from i imagine feeling emotional at the time but that's just chemical

Many people don't even realise that I'm english anymore so i must be relatively acculturated