This page explains what it means to get 'parental consent' for an Australian passport or other travel document for your child.
It will take you through your options if you don't have full parental consent and what to expect if you apply without full parental consent.
If you’re applying for a Convention Travel Document or Certificate of Identity for a child who's not an Australian citizen, the rules on parental responsibility and consent are the same as for an Australian child passport.
Watch our 'Applying for a passport without full consent' video.
The simplest way to get a child passport is to get consent from every person who has parental responsibility for your child.
'Full parental consent’ means that every person with parental responsibility for a child agrees to an action or decision about that child.
In this case, each person with parental responsibility must agree or consent to the child being issued with a passport or other travel document. Each person must provide this consent by completing sections 12 to 15 of the application form.
As the person lodging the application, you're responsible for getting full parental consent.
Where possible and safe to do so, we encourage you to try and get consent from each person with parental responsibility. If you're unable to, you must tell us why. This may include details of any attempts you've made to get consent.
If you don't have consent from each person with parental responsibility, there are other ways, including with certain court orders. You can also ask for an assessment under special circumstances, but the application can take longer to process. In some situations, we may not approve the passport.
Who can have parental responsibility
People with parental responsibility can include:
each person listed as a parent on the child’s birth certificate
the husband of the child’s mother, if she was married to him when the child was born, or during the 44 weeks before the child’s birth
a person listed on Child Support Agency documents as a parent, and who is paying (or has previously paid) child support
a person who has guardianship or custody of the child
a person who has parental responsibility for the child, under Commonwealth or Australian state or territory law.
Other orders may give custody, guardianship, or parental responsibility of a child to another person or people under state or territory child welfare laws in Australia.
If you're a child's legal guardian or work for a child welfare or protective agency, see our
All parental consent signatures must be witnessed by someone aged over 18 who is not:
related to you or your child by birth or marriage
a person with parental responsibility or legal guardianship for your child
in a de facto or registered relationship with any person who has parental responsibility for your child
living at the same address as your child or anyone with parental responsibility for them
an Australian Passport Officer (including at overseas posts)
an Australia Post employee.
That witness:
does not need to be an Australian citizen
can act as a witness for more than one person
can also be the child's guarantor.
The witness must provide their daytime phone number so they can be contacted about the application if required.
If you have full parental consent for your child to get an Australian passport or other travel document, follow the child passport application process.
Giving consent from different locations
If people in different locations want to consent to a child passport, the quickest option is:
Those providing consent print out the form, complete sections 12 to 15 in front of a witness, and email a scan of that page to the lodging person to submit with the rest of the application.
If that won’t work for you, then those NOT lodging the application can:
If you're unable to provide an original court order, we may need to verify the order with the Court.
Add these documents to everything you gather during Step 1 of the child passport application process.
If you don't have full parental consent or a relevant Australian court order, you can ask us to assess your child passport (or other travel document) application under ‘special circumstances’.
We can consider issuing a passport or other Australian travel document under the circumstances described in:
When you apply for a child passport under ‘special circumstances’, you'll need to complete extra forms and provide supporting evidence.
If you haven’t already, and it's safe for you to do so, we encourage you to attempt to get consent from each person with parental responsibility.
Extra forms
You’ll need to complete extra forms in situations where:
you can’t get full parental consent, and there are no Australian court orders that allow a passport to be issued – complete a B-9 form
only one parent is listed on your child's birth certificate – complete a B-8 form
your child was born through surrogacy – complete a B-4 form and a B-5 form
there are any orders made under state or territory child welfare laws that relate to your child – complete a B-10 form.
It's important to answer all questions on each form you complete. If you leave sections blank or information is missing, we may not be able to determine if your application meets certain eligibility requirements. We may not be able to process your application until we receive that information.
Supporting evidence
If you apply under ‘special circumstances’, you’ll also need to provide supporting evidence. Depending on your situation, this may include documents such as:
declarations from government bodies or educational institutions
family violence orders
foreign court orders
judicial orders
medical or police documents.
If your situation involves family violence, we may ask you to provide other supporting evidence. This might include support letters from a women’s refuge, a social worker or similar. It's important to know that a family violence order doesn’t change who has parental responsibility.
Wecan't guarantee that we'll issue a passport when you apply under ‘special circumstances’.
If we decline a passport application, the application fee may not be refundable.
Timeframes
Applications without full parental consent or a relevant Australian court order can take much longer than our usual processing time. This is because assessment depends on your individual situation.
Our faster processing options are not available without full parental consent. If you're applying without full consent or a relevant Australian court order, you're not eligible for this service.
We recommend not booking your travel unless we've confirmed that we've approved your child's passport.
Need help?
If you need help or advice with any part of the process, contact us.
