Apply for Your First Adult Passport

1. Complete your application form (PC8) online

• The application must be lodged within six months of completion

2. Print and sign your application form

• Print your application on plain white A4 paper, using black ink only. Make sure your form has printed in full and isn't cut off at the top or bottom of the page.
•  US standard letter paper or US legal paper sizes are also acceptable, but only if they’re scaled properly. Refer to more information on printing your application form
•  Sign the form using black pen, within the signature box. Make sure there are no alterations or whiteout on the signature or the date.
• A guarantor must sign section 11 of the application form. Remember the guarantor must also endorse the back of a passport photo by writing ‘This is a true photo of [applicant's full name]’ and signing in black pen.

3. Photos

•  Include two high quality colour glossy photo prints, less than six months old. Refer to photo guidelines for more information.
• No retouching of photographs permitted.
•  The back of one photo must be endorsed by the guarantor, writing ‘This is a true photo of [applicant' full name]’ and signed in black pen.
• Please aslo email the digital version of the photo (JPEG) to [email protected] . Please put your full name and the passport application number in the subject line.
• DO NOT attach the photos to the form as this may damage them.

4. Collect all your citizenship and identity documents

To qualify for a passport, you need to confirm your Australian citizenship and prove your personal identity, using original documents:

• Full Australian birth certificate issued by an Australian state or territory Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages and if you were born on or after 20 August 1986, additional documentation to confirm your citizenship.
  OR
• Your Australian citizenship certificate issued by the Commonwealth of Australia (or documents from the register of citizenship by descent/Australian births/adoptions overseas).
  AND
• A combination of official documents to support your identity - combination 1 or 2 or 3:

Combination 1

• One document from Category A plus
• One document from Category B. plus
• If neither of these documents shows your current address, one document from Category C that shows your current address.

Combination 2 (only if you can’t present Combination 1)

• Two documents from Category B plus
• One official document that includes your photo plus
• if none of these documents show your current address, you will also need to provide one document from Category C that shows your current address.

Combination 3 (only if you can’t present Combination 1 or 2)

• At least three documents from Category C that show your name and current address plus
• One official document that includes your photo and signature e.g. a workplace identity card, student card.

Your application may take longer to process if you use Combination 3.

Category A

These documents have to be original and current. We don’t accept digital driver licences.

Category B

These documents have to be originals. They also have to be current, with the exception of the Australian passport.

Category C

These documents have to be no more than 12 months old when you apply for your passport.

5. Name changes

You must present original documentation supporting every name change since your birth or acquisition of Australian citizenship. Please see the Name change section for further details.

6. Guarantor

You will need a guarantor to endorse your photograph and complete and sign section 11 of your application form. You guarantor should ideally be Australian with a current (unexpired) Australian passport that was issued with at least two years' validity. If you do not know an Australian passport holder who can meet the requirements, you may use someone currently employed in your country in the following approved professional groups. This person does not have to be Australian:

• Certified accountants, engineers, or bank managers (senior management);
• Judges, barristers, solicitors, patent attorneys, clerks of court, bailiffs, sheriffs;
• Registered medical practitioners, dentists, registered veterinary surgeons, registered nurses;
• Members of Parliament, elected city, county and district councillors;
• Police officers with at least 5 years continuous service;
• Teachers - full-time, who have been teaching for more than 5 year; or
• Civil servants - full-time, who have been employed continuously for at least 5 years by their current government.

Your guarantor must also:

• be 18 years of age or over;
• have known you for at least 12 months;
• not be related to you by birth, marriage, de facto or same-sex relationship, nor live at your address;
• be able to endorse the back of one photograph in English by writing "This is a true photograph of (applicant's full name)" and sign in black pen.

7. Lodge your passport application in person

You must lodge your application in person. Remember to take along your original identity documents, which will be checked and returned to you at the time

• To lodge your application at the Australian Embassy, Moscow, you must email us at [email protected] to book your appointment.  Interviews for passport applications can also be arranged at the Australian Consulates in St. Petersburg and Almaty, Kazakhstan. To lodge your application through our consulates, follow these steps.
• Remember to bring the originals of all the relevant documents (which will be returned to you at the time), endorsed photos and the means to pay the passport fee at the interview.
• Fees can be paid in RUB by bank card only over the counter or remotely. Cash payments are not accepted.
• Please note that Passport Fees change every month. For the latest fee in RUB please email or call the Embassy directly to confirm the required amounts prior to making payment.

If you have further queries, please check www.passports.gov.au as most likely the answer to your question can be found there. If you are still unable to resolve your query, you can contact the Australian Embassy's Passports Section at [email protected]  or on +7 (495) 956 6070.