Sami Dia, an evacuee from Lebanon, displays his passport as Canadian passport holders fleeing the conflict in Lebanon arrive at the port of Mersin in Turkey's Mediterranean coastal city July 21, 2006
Sami Dia, an evacuee from Lebanon, displays his passport as Canadian passport holders. Reuters/Fatih Saribas

New Zealand is on its way to restore the 10-year passports. The move comes after 10 years since it switched over to 5-year passports in 2005. But in the new makeover, the plan is to increase the passport fees further. Interestingly, the life of Kiwi passports was reduced to five years as a security measure.

Prime Minister John Key said the proposal to change the validity back to 10 years will go to the Cabinet "pretty soon," and the change would be in place within "six months or so." Speaking to TVNZ, Mr Key acknowledged that five-year passports were "just annoying for people," but hinted that the cost will be revised from the present NZ$135 [$132], reports Stuff. Co.Nz.

Petition Launched

One reason for the change could be the activism mounted by some critics. There are also complaints that New Zealand's passport is one of the most expensive in the world. In 2014, Australian-based New Zealander Kyle Lockwood launched a mass petition and collected nearly 16,000 signatures, demanding a return to 10-year passports.

The Government's administration committee recommended a review of the validity period as well. In August 2014, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne announced a review to examine the cost of returning to 10-year passports and also to confirm whether they would be secure enough against counterfeiting. The review was completed in December 2014 and Dunne sent its findings to the Cabinet.

A Radio NZ report says that five-year passports were meant to keep pace with the fast-improving security technologies and make passports extremely secure against theft or fraud. It is reported that many officials still want to stick with five year passports.

According to Minister of Internal Affairs Peter Dunne, the span of passports were reduced to five years in response to a request from the United States Government. It was done for security reasons in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in New York and Washington. But the United States itself did not change. Many countries that made such changes have already reverted to the 10-year format.

Taxpayers Support

Meanwhile, the Taxpayers Union welcomed the new move on 10 year passports. It wanted the government to rethink on the price revision part. Executive director of the union, Jordan Williams, said passports in New Zealand are already expensive compared to many other countries. He said the union would oppose any suggestion to seek a higher price for the 10-year passport.

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