Australian Embassy
The Netherlands

Passport Guarantors

Passport Guarantors

All applications for an Australian passport (except applications for the renewal of an adult passport expired for less than 3 years) must be accompanied by a guarantor's declaration.  Please read the following advice carefully to ensure the person you select is able to act as a guarantor, and that they complete their declaration correctly.

 

Who can act as guarantor?

General Requirements

 

There are certain conditions which a person must always meet to be able to act as your guarantor. You will find the details of these conditions below. If your guarantor does not meet these requirements, you will be asked to provide another guarantor.

To be eligible to act as guarantor for a passport application, a person must:

  • be 18 years of age or over;
  • have known the applicant for at least 12 months  (or for children under one year, since birth);
  • not be related to the applicant by birth, marriage, de facto or same sex relationship,
  • not live at the applicant's address; and
  • hold or have previously held an Australian passport that was issued with at least two years validity or
  • be currently employed in one of the approved professional or occupational groups.

 

Acceptable Professional and Occupational Groups

If your guarantor is not an Australian passport holder, they must be currently employed in one of the following professional groups:

  • Accountants who are members of either the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants, National Institute of Accountants or Association of Taxation and Management Accountants (You should specify which membership status applies).
  • Bailiffs
  • Barristers, Solicitors and Patent Attorneys
  • Bank Managers except managers of bank travel centres
  • Chartered Professional Engineers
  • Clerk of Courts
  • Clerk of Petty Sessions
  • Dentists
  • Elected Representatives of Federal Parliaments, State Parliaments, Territory Parliaments, Legislative Assembly of Norfolk Island and Municipal or Shire Councils
  • Holders of Statutory Offices for which an annual salary is payable
  • Judges
  • Marriage Celebrants
  • Members currently serving in the regular Australian Defence Force with at least five years continuous service
  • Members of the Governance Institute of Australia (formerly Chartered Institute of Company Secretaries)
  • Pharmacists
  • Police Officers with at least 5 years continuous service
  • Postal Managers
  • Public Servants who are current full-time employees of Commonwealth, State, territory or local Governments or Statutory Authorities and who have been employed continuously for at least 5 years by their current employer
  • Registered Chiropractors
  • Registered Medical Practitioners
  • Registered Nurses or Midwives
  • Registered Optometrists
  • Registered Physiotherapists
  • Registered Psychologists
  • Registered Tax Agents
  • Registered Veterinary Surgeons
  • Sheriffs
  • Stipendiary Magistrates
  • Teachers who are full time and who have been teaching for more than five years at schools or tertiary institutions

 

Availability

Your guarantor must also be available for contact by the Embassy.  Until we have been able to contact your nominated guarantor, the processing of your passport application will be put on hold.  If we cannot contact your guarantor within a reasonable amount of time, we may require you to provide us with another guarantor.

 

What should the guarantor do?

To complete the declaration, the guarantor will need to fill in their full name, date of birth and the period they have known you, as well as their address and a daytime telephone number on which they can be reached. 

Please note that the guarantor's declaration must be completed in full using black ink only and block letters. The use of stamps with address details is not permitted, and you should ensure that no stamp is placed over the guarantor's signature.

The guarantor must then also sign the form and the back of your photograph and write the following on the back of the photograph:

"This is a true photograph of [your name in full]".