If you need to renew your passport soon listen up.

Te Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs is completing a significant upgrade to the New Zealand Passports system, which will add new online functionality and provide a better experience for passport customers.

The scheduled times for the upgrade are as follows:

- 5pm, Thursday 7 March to 8am, Monday 11 March 2024 (NZDT)

-4am, Thursday 7 March to 7pm, Sunday 10 March 2024 (GMT)

-3pm, Thursday 7 March to 6am, Monday 11 March 2024 (AEDT)

What the outage means for people needing a new passport and for those who need an emergency fast-tracked passport.

“Our passport service will be unavailable while we implement the upgrade to our systems,” says Te Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs general manager of services and access Adrian Jarvis.

“This means that, during this time, customers will be unable to apply for a passport and we will be unable to process applications.

“Our urgent passport and after-hours call out services will not be available while we implement the upgrade to our systems.

“Customers in urgent need of a passport should check our website for information on processing timeframes and apply after the upgrade is complete.

Adrian says that unsubmitted passport applications will be deleted at the beginning of this upgrade.

“These are applications that have been saved but not paid for nor submitted to the New Zealand Passports office.

“The reason these applications are being deleted is that the upgrade to our system includes technical changes to the online application form.

“Old draft applications won’t match the new form, which means that we can’t keep them.

“We are proactively contacting customers with draft applications to let them know of this situation.”

Adrian says that if a customer starts their application before 5pm, Tuesday 5 March, they must submit and pay for it by 12noon, Thursday 7 March.

“If a customer starts an application between 12pm, Tuesday 5 March and 5pm, Thursday 7 March, they will need to submit and pay for it before 5pm, Thursday 7 March.

“If customers do not submit their passport application before these times, they will need to start their application again once the news system is in place.”

Will there be any way for people to get a passport?

“Customers will be unable to apply for a passport and we will be unable to process applications during the duration of the upgrade.

“People who find they have an unexpected urgent need to travel can contact us, and we will advise them about their options, and how we could support them to apply as soon as our system is back up and running.”

When should people be applying for the passport if they need one within the next couple of weeks?

Most standard passports are currently being processed in up to 10 working days, says Adrian.

“Customers have the option to request an urgent passport, which is processed in up to 3 working days.

“If someone needs to travel sooner than 3 days, they should apply for an urgent passport and then call us straight away - they may need our after-hours call-out service.

“We encourage people to consider these timeframes when planning a trip, apply for their passport with enough time to spare and allow extra time for delivery.

“We especially encourage anyone who is travelling between now and Tuesday 12 March to check their passport now and ensure it has sufficient validity for their travel, noting that some countries require 6 months validity from the date of departure.”

More information about why Te Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs is upgrading their system and how these changes are making things easier for New Zealanders applying for a passport is available on the DIA website – https://www.dia.govt.nz/Upgrades-to-the-New-Zealand-Passports-system

More information about passport costs and processing timeframes is available on the passports.govt.nz website - https://www.passports.govt.nz/passport-costs/