UK passport application fees increase: How much are prices increasing by for online, postal and 'Premium Service' applications

The price will jump from £88.50 to £94.50 for adults and £57.50 to £61.50 for children. The rise is a uniform 7 per cent – more than twice the current rate of inflation.

Postal applications will increase from £100 to £107 for adults and from £69 to £74 for children. The fee for a “Premium Service” (one-day) application made from within in the UK will rise from £207.50 to £222 for adults.

The government says: “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.” Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “It's another financial hit for travellers and comes at a time when ongoing cost of living pressures continue to take their toll. It feels like travellers are continually penalised whenever they choose to travel overseas.” The Home Office says that all but three in every 1,000 straightforward applications are processed in three weeks or less.