Brits hit with new £102 holiday charge from Wednesday, April 8

Brits face a new £102 charge for going on holiday abroad from Wednesday, April 8, as new passport application fees take effect.

As of April 8, the cost of applying for a new passport online is rising by £7.50, while postal application fees will go up by £8.50. HM Passport Office announced the new fees last month and confirmed these will take effect from April 8. The price hikes will take the cost of standard online application fee from £94.50 to £102 for adults, while for children, rates will go up from £61.50 to £66.50 - an increase of £5.

The cost of applying for a new passport by post is even higher, with fees rising from £107 to £115.50 for adults - an £8.50 increase - and from £74 to £80 for children - a £6 increase.

The One Day Premium Service, which is available if you need to get your passport renewed quickly, is rising by a whopping £17.50, from £222 to £239.50.

Additionally, overseas applications for a UK passport will go up from April 8, with standard online applications for adults rising from £108 to £116.50 (an £8.50 increase) and for children from £70 to £75.50 (a £5.50 increase).

Adults who apply from overseas via paper application will pay £130, up from £120.50, while children will pay £89, up from £82.50.

British nationals born on or before September 2, 1929, are entitled to get or renew a British passport for free and can also use the Post Office Check and Send service free of charge, which includes free secure delivery.

The Home Office said: "The new fees will help the Home Office to continue to move towards a system that meets its costs through those who use it, reducing reliance on funding from general taxation. The Government does not make any profit from the cost of passport applications.

“The fees contribute to the cost of processing passport applications, consular support overseas, including for lost or stolen passports, and the cost of processing British citizens at UK borders.”

British holidaymakers are advised to apply for a new passport “in good time” for travelling, and generally will get their travel document within three weeks.

According to HM Passport Office, 99.7% of standard applications from the UK were processed within three weeks in 2025, where no further information was required.

Brits travelling to a country in the European Union, or Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, must have a passport that has a ‘date of issue’ less than 10 years before the date of arrival, and an ‘expiry date’ of at least three months after the day you plan to leave. It means that if you renewed your passport before October 1, 2018, it may have a date of issue that is more than 10 years ago.

If your passport doesn’t meet both of these requirements, then you will be denied entry as you don’t have a valid travel document to enter these countries.