US$318 Passport fees for Diasporans

Zimbabweans living in the diaspora will now pay US$318 for passport applications, the Government announced on Monday.

Consequently, applications for passport renewal from the diaspora will be given priority.  

In a statement, Home Affairs minister Kazembe Kazembe said the review was aimed at, “assisting the (Civil Registry) Department to attend to attend for passports by citizens in the diaspora”.

This comes at a time when the country is battling a backlog of 359 288 passports backdating to August 2018.

The backlog has been attributed to the shortage of foreign currency to procure items such as ink, films and passport paper.

Minister Kazembe said, “The department is charging all its clients in local currency yet consumables for the production of passports are imported and require foreign currency”.

He said further details on the implementation of the decision are still being worked out.

The Government has hinted on an upward review of all passport applications in order to meet production costs.