Tips

Canadian Passport Fees Increase with New Features

Don't get grounded at the border. Passport fees jump on July 1, 2013, with new features being installed

By Claire Newell /

The new Canadian passport will feature an embedded computer chip

If your passport is up for renewal, be aware of new format and fee changes in effect as of July 1, 2013

There have been some major changes to passport requirements over the last five years and more are coming next month. Passports issued after July 1, 2013 will be in the new ePassport format, which is embedded with a computer chip.

The chip stores the same personal information that you see on page two of your passport (except for your signature), plus your photo and a digital security feature that proves the passport was issued by the Government of Canada.

There are also new images on the inside pages of the passport to celebrate Canada’s history, similar to what we see on Canadian currency. These images also serve as an added security feature.

Passport Cost Rises

A new look is not the only change; as of July 1, the cost of a five-year passport will increase $87 to $120. Kids’ passports will now cost $57 (up from $37), and the new 10-year option will be $160. (The 10-year version is not available for children.)

Approximately 55,000 Canadian passports are reported lost or stolen every year. The passport agency is also raising other fees, including a $45 charge on top of the regular passport fee to replace a document that’s lost, damaged or stolen.

International Orders

Canadians ordering passports from outside the country will see the biggest jump in fees. It will cost $190 to apply for, or receive, the five-year document from another country (up from the original $97), while kids’ passports will cost $100. The fee rises to $260 for the 10-year version requested under the same circumstances.

With these increases in fees, the agency noted that it had not increased fees for nearly a decade, and that it was losing nearly $5 every time it issued a travel document.

So, keep these new fees in mind when your next passport renewal comes up.

Claire Newell is the travel media expert for Global BC, host of the travel series Operation: Vacation, best-selling author, spokesperson, wife and mother of two.

Originally published in TVW. For daily programming updates and on-screen Entertainment news, subscribe to the free TVW e-newsletters, or purchase a subscription to the weekly magazine.