Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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PASSPORTS REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1993 NO. 157

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Statutory Rules 1993 No. 157

Issued by the authority of the Minister for Trade

Passports Act 1938

Passports Regulations (Amendment)

Section 12 of the Passports Act 1938 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purposes of the Act.

Subregulation 9(1) of the Passports Regulations provides for the issue of a certificate of identity to a person, not being an Australian citizen, who is about to leave Australia and who is stateless or unable to gain a passport from the country of which that person claims to be a national.

The first purpose of these amendments to the Passports Regulations was to provide for the issue of certificates of identity to certain categories of person, being refugees and persons whose application for a protection visa has been approved, in circumstances where they do not have plans to leave Australia. Under the existing subregulation 9(1) these persons could only obtain certificates of identity if they were about to leave Australia.

A new subregulation 9(1) provides for the issue of certificates of identity to refugees and persons whose application for a protection visa has been approved, without the requirement that they are about to leave Australia. Subregulation 9(3) has been inserted to provide a definition of "protection visa".

Regulation 13 of the Passports Regulations provides that fees are payable in respect of passports and travel documents as specified in Schedule 2 of the Passports Regulations.

The second purpose of these amendments to the Passports Regulations was to give effect to a Government decision to increase fees for passport issue on 1 July each year in accordance with the Consumer Price Index for the preceding twelve months ending 31 March.

A new Schedule 2 of the Passports Regulations specifies the revised fees to be charged for the issue and renewal of and placement of observations on travel documents.

The fee charged for the issue of an ordinary adult passport, for example, has been increased from $100 to $101.


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