Although we are an apolitical movement, with the upcoming September 20th elections we have written to NZ political party leaders and asked them to inform us of their parties position on reinstating 10-year NZ Passports.
Please note that this is general information only, it is certainly not our intent to tell you who to vote for - we will leave that important decision to you.
Today we share the Labour Party position on reinstating 10-year passports to NZ citizens:
"Labour has listened to frustrated Kiwis who are forced to renew their passports every five years and will introduce a 10-year system, Labour Leader David Cunliffe says.
“The five-year system was primarily introduced for security measures in the wake of September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks in the United States.
“But the introduction of biometric facial recognition technology means there is now a much lower risk of passport fraud.
“The US, Australia, Canada and the European Union now issue their citizens with 10-year passports.
“There is no reason for New Zealanders, who are amongst the world’s most frequent travellers, to be different.
“Labour will continue to limit passport life to five years for people under 15 because their features change a lot in younger years.
“There will be no initial extra cost to the taxpayer or on applications resulting from this change because fees are ring-fenced and not used for general government revenue purposes. However, passport fees would need to be reviewed in 2019.
“This change will make overseas travel cheaper and easier for everyday hardworking Kiwis,” David Cunliffe says."
Expatriate New Zealand citizens who have visited New Zealand in the past 3 years are also eligible to vote, online, please follow the instructions at the bottom of the page here: http://www.nzten.com/