You renew your Irish passport from Australia online, through the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Passport Online service. As of November 2026 it’s the only way to apply from here: an adult renewal costs EUR 75 plus EUR 15 overseas postage, you need a digital photo, a bank card and an email address, and the new passport is posted to your Australian address. The current average for a simple adult renewal is 10 working days, plus postage.
Short version
- Apply on Passport Online. Paper forms aren’t accepted from Australia.
- Have ready your passport, a digital photo taken by someone else, an email address and a bank card.
- Pay EUR 90 for an adult or EUR 35 for a child, postage included.
- No witness for adult renewals. Post your old passport only if it has more than 12 months left.
- Allow 10 working days for a simple adult renewal (15 for kids), plus postage.
- When it arrives, update your passport details with Home Affairs so your visa is linked to it.
Can you renew an Irish passport in Australia?
Yes, and it has to be online. The Embassy of Ireland says Passport Online is open to everyone living in Australia, including first-time applicants and children, and paper applications are no longer processed. Only use the official ireland.ie service: the Passport Service warns about third-party sites that charge a fee to “help”.
Going home for the holidays? You must apply from the country you live in, and the Passport Service says you can’t apply while on holiday in Ireland. Renew here before you fly (see our Christmas going home guide). Moving home for good? Sort everyone’s passports first, as our moving back to Ireland guide explains.
Simple renewal or extra paperwork?
| Your situation | What happens |
|---|---|
| Adult, last passport issued in the past 15 years | Simple renewal. No witness, usually nothing to post. |
| Last passport over 15 years old, or never had one | First-time application online: a witnessed form plus documents. |
| Lost or stolen, or expired over 5 years ago | Renew online. You may be asked to post extra ID, such as an original driver’s licence. |
| Child under 18 | Online, plus a consent form signed by all guardians in front of a witness. |
Adults can apply once their passport is within 12 months of expiry. Apply earlier and you must post the old passport in. The new one runs from its issue date, so leftover time is lost.
How to renew online, step by step
- Sort your photo first (rules below). The form takes about 10 minutes.
- Apply and pay on Passport Online with Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Diners Club or a prepaid card. Keep your 11-digit application number.
- Post anything they ask for. Most adult renewals need nothing. If you do, print the Application Cover Page, which gives the address, and use a secure postal service. Processing starts when the documents arrive. Don’t add an AirTag: the Passport Service destroys trackers.
- Track it on the passport tracker. New applications can take 5 to 10 working days to appear.
- Delivery: outside Ireland it comes by registered post and may need a signature, so give a daytime address (work is fine). Documents come back separately.
How much it costs (as of November 2026)
| Passport Online | Fee |
|---|---|
| Adult 10-year passport | EUR 75 |
| Adult passport plus Passport Card | EUR 100 |
| Passport Card on its own | EUR 35 |
| Child 5-year passport (under 18) | EUR 20 |
| Child passport plus Passport Card | EUR 45 |
| Postage if you live outside Ireland | EUR 15 per application |
So an adult renewal from Australia is EUR 90 all in, and a child’s EUR 35. Your bank converts the euro and may add a foreign transaction fee. Full list on the passport fees page.
How long it takes
| Application type | Average processing time |
|---|---|
| Simple adult renewal | 10 working days |
| Complex adult renewal (lost passport, name change, extra documents) | 15 working days |
| Child renewal | 15 working days |
| First-time application (adult or child) | 20 working days |
These are averages from the turnaround times page, not guarantees, and they exclude postage, which takes longer from overseas. The Department’s FAQ suggests applying at least 12 weeks before you travel. Your passport number also changes, and you can’t get the new one until the passport arrives.
Getting a passport photo in Australia
Poor photos are the main reason applications get rejected. Your digital photo must be:
- taken in the last 6 months (no reusing your old one)
- in colour, a JPEG, at least 715 by 951 pixels and under 9MB
- unedited, with no filters, and not a scan of a print
- against a plain light grey, white or cream background, with no shadows
- head to mid torso, looking straight ahead, neutral expression, mouth closed
- taken by someone else: no selfies, no zoom
Glasses are fine without glare or frames over your eyes. Babies can lie on a plain white surface, with no hands in shot and no soother.
The photo code booths (Photo Me and IDstation) only operate in Ireland and the UK. Here, get a mate to take it on a phone against a plain wall, or ask a photographer or pharmacy for the digital file by email or USB. Check the photo guidelines before uploading.
Do you need a witness?
Not for an adult renewal, even if you’re reporting the old passport lost or stolen. You do need one for:
- First-time adult applications (including a last passport over 15 years old): the Identity Verification Form.
- Every child application: the Child Passport Identity and Consent Form.
Outside Ireland, the witness must live in the same country as you and be practising in an approved profession, including police officers, teachers, school principals, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, vets, lawyers, accountants, bank managers, clergy, notaries and elected representatives (full list on the witnessing page).
On children’s forms the witness must know you personally, stamp the form (or attach a business card) and give a work landline, as mobiles aren’t accepted.
Heads up: a Justice of the Peace isn’t on the Irish list, so the JP desk at your local shopping centre won’t do. Your GP, pharmacist, child’s teacher or accountant are all on it.
Renewing your child’s Irish passport
Children’s passports last 5 years, and every child needs their own. You can renew once theirs is within 6 months of expiry; with more than 6 months left, you post it in. The big difference is that every guardian must consent:
- One parent (Guardian A) applies online and pays. You’ll need a printer.
- Print the Child Passport Identity and Consent Form. The emailed link works for 5 days, up to 5 times.
- Guardian A brings the child to a witness, who confirms the child’s identity and witnesses Guardian A’s signature. Children aged 7 and over sign too.
- The other guardian signs in front of the same or a different witness, in the country where they live.
- Post the form (and old passport, if needed) to the address on the cover page.
If one parent won’t or can’t consent, you need a court order dispensing with their consent. A sole guardian sends a sole guardian affidavit (form AFF1) and the child’s original birth certificate.
Australian-born kids
If you or the other parent is an Irish citizen born in Ireland, your child is automatically Irish and can apply for a first passport online (allow about 20 working days, and you’ll post original birth certificates). If the Irish parent was born abroad, the child must go on the Foreign Births Register first, and the Department says to allow about 12 months. We’re working on a full guide to citizenship by descent.
The Irish Passport Card: handy, but not for Australia
The Passport Card is a credit card sized travel document for Irish citizens who already hold a valid passport book. It’s valid for travel to EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. Australia isn’t on that list, so you can’t use it to fly in or out of here.
It’s handy once you’re in Europe, and most airlines and ferries between Ireland and Britain now ask Irish citizens for a passport or Passport Card. It costs EUR 35 on its own (plus postage), lasts up to 5 years but never longer than your book, and takes about 10 working days. Your book needs at least 3 months left, and under-18s only get one bundled with their passport.
Need to travel urgently?
Passport Online can’t issue emergency passports, and urgent appointments are only in Dublin, Cork and London. Applications are only fast-tracked for a genuine emergency, such as the death, illness or welfare of a family member, with proof.
In a genuine emergency, the Embassy can also issue an emergency travel document. It isn’t biometric, it’s valid for a limited time, and you still apply for a full passport. The Embassy lists AUD 45 (plus AUD 85 out of hours) on top of the passport fee; the Melbourne Consulate lists AUD 50 (plus AUD 80 out of hours).
| Office | Details |
|---|---|
| Embassy of Ireland, Canberra | 20 Arkana Street, Yarralumla ACT. +61 2 6214 0000. For everyone outside NSW, Victoria and Tasmania. |
| Consulate General, Sydney | Level 26, 1 Market Street. +61 2 9273 8500. NSW, by appointment. |
| Consulate General, Melbourne | Collins Street. +61 3 8680 2300. Opened 2026 for Victoria and Tasmania, by appointment. |
| Honorary Consul, Perth | Kavanagh Lawyers, Level 3, 165/580 Hay Street. +61 8 6557 5802. |
Out of hours, ring +61 2 6214 0000 for the duty officer, or Dublin on +353 1 408 2000. Contact forms are on the Embassy’s contact page.
Lost or stolen? Report it to the police and ask for a report, then apply online straight away and say it was lost or stolen. That cancels it. If it turns up, don’t travel on it. Losing two or more can mean a shorter passport next time.
Travelling during the renewal, and updating your visa
With under 12 months left you don’t post your passport in, so you keep it during the renewal. Citizens Information says the old one is cancelled within 4 weeks of you receiving the new one, so switch over when it arrives. The Department’s rule of thumb is to keep 6 months on your passport from the date you’re due home.
Don’t skip this: link your new passport to your Australian visa
Australian visas are electronic. There’s no sticker: your visa is linked to your passport. When the new one arrives, tell Home Affairs so it can link your visa to it. That goes for any visa, from working holiday and student to bridging, partner, skilled or permanent.
- Log in to ImmiAccount and open your application.
- Choose Update details, then Change of passport details.
- Pick the applicant, enter the new details and the reason, and submit.
It’s linked within 3 business days. If you can’t use ImmiAccount (say you can’t import an older application), the New Passport Details web form takes 14 days. Both are on the Home Affairs new passport page. Do it as soon as the passport lands, before you book travel.
It’s also why our complete guide to moving to Australia says to renew before a visa application if your passport is running low. Changing visa? See our visa options to stay in Australia longer. Just landed? Try our first week in Australia checklist.
Stuck on a witness, a photo or a consent form? Ask in your local Irish group, where plenty have done it from Australia.
FAQ
Can I renew my Irish passport in Australia?
Yes, online through Passport Online, and the passport is posted to you. Paper applications are no longer processed.
How much does it cost to renew an Irish passport from Australia?
As of November 2026, EUR 90 for an adult (EUR 75 plus EUR 15 overseas postage) and EUR 35 for a child.
How long does Irish passport renewal take from Australia?
On average 10 working days for a simple adult renewal and 15 for a child, plus postage. Apply well before you travel.
Can I renew at the Irish Embassy in Canberra or the Sydney consulate?
No, all applications are online. The Embassy can issue an emergency travel document, but only in a genuine emergency.
Do I need a witness to renew my Irish passport?
Not as an adult renewing online. First-time and children’s applications do, from the approved list. A Justice of the Peace isn’t on it.
Do I have to send my old passport back?
Only if it has more than 12 months left (adults) or more than 6 months (children). Otherwise you keep it until the new one arrives.
Can I use the Irish Passport Card to travel to Australia?
No. It’s only valid for the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. You need your passport book for Australia.
Can I renew my Irish passport while I’m home in Ireland for Christmas?
No. You must apply from the country you live in, so renew from Australia before you go.
Do I need to update my Australian visa after renewing my passport?
Yes. Update your passport details with Home Affairs in ImmiAccount (3 business days) so your visa is linked to the new passport.
I’m an Australian citizen too. Which passport do I use?
Australian citizens, including dual nationals, are required to enter and leave Australia on an Australian passport. Keep the Irish one in date for Europe.
This guide is general information, checked against official sources on 2 November 2026. Fees and processing times change, so check the Passport Service and Home Affairs pages before you apply.
